A Place to Call Home
by SuzieGirl03
Summary: What if Lorelai Gilmore had given birth to twins, a boy and a girl? What if her parents had convinced her to marry Christoper? What if Lorelai finally made it to Stars Hollow with her kids fourteen years later? Would she still fall in love with the grumpy, handsome, kind-hearted diner owner?
1. Our New Beginning

Disclaimer: I don't own Gilmore Girls or the characters. It would be really cool if I did.

Synopsis: What if Lorelai had been pregnant with twins? What if she and Christopher had gotten married? What if they had another child years later? How would things turn out for her and the kids. This is my take on that idea.

I hope you all enjoy!

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 1: Our New Beginning**

 _A young Lorelai Gilmore stared at a map of Connecticut. Her eyes went straight to Stars Hollow, a small town only thirty minutes away. She could imagine raising her one year old twins, Rory and Ryan, there. She thought it would be cool to tell people she lived in Stars Hollow. She could already imagine the conversations she would have with people about what she assumed to be a small, quiet, interesting little town._

 _It wouldn't take her very long to pack up the twins and leave what she considered to be her hell on earth. She knew that this wasn't the life that she wanted. She didn't want her parents controlling every aspect of her kids' lives or her life. She wanted her kids to enjoy playing in the dirt, eating junk food, and figuring out life for themselves._

" _Stars Hollow," Lorelai said softly. It had a nice ring to it. She could do it. She could find the courage to leave._

" _Lorelai," Emily Gilmore opened the door and walked further into her daughter's room. "What on earth?" Emily was exasperated. "Why aren't you in your dress?" She pointed to the wedding dress hanging on the closet door. "You were supposed to be downstairs five minutes ago." Emily grabbed the dress. "Christopher is waiting for you. And the twins are going to need their nap soon. We need to hurry this along."_

' _Hurry this along,' Lorelai thought to herself. She felt like it had been hurried along enough. This was not what Lorelai had dreamed about when she was a little girl. This was not her fairy tale wedding. A marriage was supposed to be special. She cared about Christopher, but she knew the two of them were not ready for marriage, and it was bound to end in divorce. She shouldn't have to get married just because she had gotten pregnant at sixteen. She had grown exhausted trying to argue her point to her parents, Christopher's parents, and even Christopher. He seemed to think marriage was the right step for the two of them. He was excited about their little family._

 _Everyone seemed to have her life completely figured out for her. Lorelai, Christopher, and the twins would live in the pool house. Christopher would go to college and work in the insurance business with Richard. Lorelai would take care of the twins and help Emily with the DAR and all of her high society events. She would be the perfect wife and mother. Emily would make sure of it._

 _Fortunately, she was able to put the nuptials off for almost two years. First, she said she wanted to wait until after the twins were born because she wanted to make sure she wasn't fat for the pictures. And then once they were born she claimed she would look too tired for pictures. But her mother was done with the excuses. She basically planned the day without even asking Lorelai what she wanted._

" _Come on, Lorelai." She held out the dress. "Are you even listening to me?"_

 _Lorelai looked at her mother. Maybe she could be honest with her. Maybe for the first time in her life she could tell her mother what she wanted, and her mother would actually listen. "Mom, I've been thinking." Lorelai said softly, almost in a whisper._

" _No," Emily immediately cut her off. "Don't even start, Lorelai. You have given me enough excuses. The day has been planned, and you and Christopher are finally going to get married."_

" _Mom, I think we should wait. I'm not ready to get married. Why don't we wait a couple of more years? That way you can throw the wedding you've always dreamed of for me." Lorelai crossed her fingers._

"You were ready to get pregnant. And y _ou are ready to get married. This is what is best for you and for your children. Don't you care about Rory and Ryan? They need both of their parents." Emily continued to hold the dress out for Lorelai._

" _Of course I care about them," Lorelai said sadly. She would do anything for her babies. That's why she wanted to leave and start her own life._

" _Then you will put this dress on, walk downstairs, and marry Christopher. He is a good man, and this marriage will work. You will see that I am right."_

" _He is still a child."_

" _The two of you became adults the minute you decided to get pregnant." Emily argued._

" _I didn't decide to get pregnant." Lorelai argued back. This conversation was totally déjà vu. They had the same conversation a thousand times since Lorelai told her parents she was pregnant._

" _It doesn't matter if you planned this. It is what it is, and the best option for your future and the future of your children is to marry their father. Now please for once in your life, would you listen to me?" Emily shoved the dress in her direction once more._

 _Lorelai thought about it. She looked down at the map. Although she wanted nothing more than to take her babies and start over in Stars Hollow, she didn't have the courage. Maybe her mother was right. Maybe they could make the marriage work._

 _Lorelai took the dress from her mother._

" _Wonderful." Emily smiled in only way that she could. "I'll see you downstairs in five minutes."_

" _Okay." Lorelai nodded._

 _Emily left the room, pleased with herself. She was finally getting her way._

 _Lorelai took the map and placed it in her night stand. "Maybe one day." She whispered as she took her wedding dress off the hanger._

Present Day

Lorelai Gilmore stood in front of a beautiful two story white house with a wraparound porch. There were beautiful flowers in the flower beds and the realtor had left hanging baskets on the porch. She hoped they could keep those. They made the house look even better. It was a simple house but the perfect house for her family.

She had been dreaming of this house for years. Even after she got married to Christopher, she had continued to dream of living in Stars Hollow. She would research jobs, houses, and town happenings often. One time she even tried to convince Christopher they should move to Stars Hollow, but he would never leave Hartford. Stars Hollow was too small for him. Christopher liked being the center of attention.

When she found the house she was now standing in front of on the real-estate website, she knew that it was fate, especially after everything that had happened. She put an offer on the house and finally made her plans to move to Stars Hollow. She had all of their things packed in record timing, even with the kids questioning her every move.

In her mind it was the perfect time to move. It was summer. Her parents were vacationing and wouldn't know they had left for a while. Christopher was only God knows where. After their divorce, he kept himself as far away from her and the kids as he possibly could. But hell he even did that when they were married. This was their time to start over…To have the life that she always dreamed of having.

"Mom," her dark haired, blue-eyed, fourteen year old mini-me joined her in front of the house. "Are you sure we can afford this?"

"Yes, honey. I've got it covered." Lorelai wrapped her arms around Rory and smiled. Rory was always trying to take care of everyone, even her. "You, Ryan, and Ruby have nothing to worry about." She really hoped that Rory believed her. She didn't want her kids to worry. This was on her. She was their mother, and it was her job to take care of them.

They could afford it. She had been saving money for years. She didn't need her parents, and she didn't need Christopher. And she had plans for a job.

"They don't look all that worried." Rory pointed to the car. Ruby was asleep, and Ryan was consumed in whatever book he was reading.

"Good. I don't want either one of you to be worried." Lorelai told her. "I've got this."

"Don't you think that we should tell grandma and grandpa where we are?" Rory asked.

Lorelai smiled as she led Rory up the stairs of the porch and into the house. Rory was her little worrier. Sometimes Lorelai thought that Rory was the mother and she was in fact the child. Although, times were changing and Rory was growing up. So was Ryan. They were both in the beginning stages of the rough teenage years, and Lorelai was concerned that the move might make it worse. Ryan didn't talk to her much, especially after the divorce. Lorelai was pretty sure Ryan blamed her for everything, and she didn't feel like arguing with him about it. He could believe what he wanted to believe. She didn't want her kids to know about everything that had happened. She was okay letting Ryan believe his dad was a good person. She would be the bad guy.

Rory was always on Lorelai's side, as was Ruby. But then again Ruby was six and still needed her mother for almost everything.

"No." Lorelai finally said as they walked through the house. "They will be home in a month and will figure it out."

"But they won't know where we are." Rory reminded her. "I know Grandma will be worried."

"Rory once we have settled down and made this town our own, I will let them know where we are. But until then you have got to trust me. Okay?" Lorelai turned to face Rory.

Rory could tell her mother was trying and decided that pushing the subject would get them nowhere. "Okay."

"Great. Now I was thinking that you and Ruby could sleep in this room." They walked into the kitchen and then into the only bedroom downstairs.

"Wait." Rory stopped her. "I have to share a room with Ruby." The realization hit her.

Lorelai crinkled her face. She knew when she bought a three bedroom house that someone would have to share. "Yes."

"Mom," Rory exclaimed. "Why can't she share a room with you?"

"Because I'm the mom." Lorelai said simply. "It makes sense for her to share with you."

"She ends up in your bed half of the time anyways."

"Well maybe she won't if she is sharing a room with her big sister." Lorelai smiled. "Besides I bought a trundle bed. That way you two will have more room."

"I can't believe this." Rory walked out of the room.

"Rory." Lorelai followed her.

Rory was already halfway up the stairs. "Why would you buy a house that only had three bedrooms?"

Lorelai joined Rory in the master bedroom. She had thought about not buying the house after finding out it only had three bedrooms, but she loved it so much. "This is the perfect house for us."

"Not if I have to share a bedroom with a six year old."

"Hon," Lorelai touched Rory's shoulder. "I know it sucks, but we really need to make this work."

"Why can't I have this room?"

"This is my room." Lorelai gave her a look. Changing was not up for discussion.

"And Ryan gets the other room up here."

Lorelai nodded. She felt like it was best to put Ryan closer to her. She had a feeling that Ryan would inherit her tendency to sneak out. She wanted to keep a close eye on him.

Rory shook her head. "Fine. I guess there is nothing I can do to change your mind."

"It is a done deal."

"This is a nice room." Rory noted as she walked out of the room.

"Yeah." Lorelai took it all in. It was a very nice room.

"Mommy."

Lorelai heard Ruby's voice downstairs.

Once Rory and Lorelai were downstairs, they saw Ruby and Ryan standing in the furniture-less living room. Ruby had curly, light brown hair. She looked a lot like Christopher, but she had Lorelai's eyes. All of her kids had her eyes.

Ryan was tall like Christopher, but he had dark hair like Lorelai. He reminded her a lot of Christopher when they were younger, besides the fact that he wasn't very talkative. Christopher was always so chatty when they were growing up. It was later in life when he stopped communicating with her.

"Hey sweetie," Lorelai took Ruby into her arms. "Hey you." She ruffled Ryan's hair. He slowly pulled away and rolled his eyes.

"I was worried that I lost you." Ruby told her. "You left me in the car. You aren't supposed to leave kids in the car."

"The car was still on." Lorelai told her. "Did you cut it off?" She asked Ryan. He nodded and handed her the keys. "Thank you."

"You still shouldn't leave us in the car." Ruby could argue with the best of them.

"It won't happen again. I promise." Lorelai kissed her forehead. "Am I off the hook?"

"For now." Ruby smiled at her.

Lorelai wiped her forehead with her hand. "Good deal. So…" She looked at Ryan. "Did you guys take the tour?"

"Yep." Ryan nodded. "I'm guessing my room is upstairs."

"It is. Right next to mine."

"Cool."

Lorelai sat Ruby down. "I think we are all really going to enjoy this place."

"Me too." Rory agreed with her.

"Ryan," Lorelai looked at her only son. "What do you think?"

Before he could answer, "Knock, knock." A woman said as she walked into their house. "Hey a sugars."

"Hi." Lorelai walked closer to the short blonde headed woman, surprised that she walked in without giving them time to answer the door.

"I'm your neighbor. Babette."

"Oh nice to meet you. I'm Lorelai." She extended her hand, but Babette pulled her into a hug.

"I'm a hugger."

"Oh good." Lorelai couldn't believe how tight Babette's grip was.

"I live right next door with my husband Morey and our baby cinnamon."

"You named a baby cinnamon?" Ryan asked curiously. Everyone else was waiting for a response. Even Ruby knew that was a weird name for a baby.

"Oh no. Cinnamon is a cat. But we love him like he is our baby."

"Oh." Lorelai was relieved.

"Mom won't let us have a cat." Ruby said.

"That's because we aren't pet people." Rory reminded her.

"You aren't a pet person, but I think I could be a pet person." Ruby told her as she made her way to Babette. "Could I play with your cat sometimes?"

"Of course you can sugar. You can come over anytime you want."

"Great. I'm Ruby." She hugged Babette. "I like hugs too."

"And this is Rory." Lorelai introduced her oldest daughter. "And this is my son Ryan."

Rory gave Babette a hug, but Ryan just nodded at her.

"It is nice to meet you." Rory told her.

"You too. You are such a beautiful girl." She totld Rory. "And you are just the cutest little girl I've ever seen." She looked at Ryan. "You are mysterious. I like that." Babette smiled at him. Ryan wasn't amused. "I think you are really going to love living in Stars Hollow. It is the best place on the planet. You can't convince me otherwise."

"Well that is what we like to hear."

Lorelai noticed Babette was looking around for something. "Babette, are you looking for something?"

"Oh yeah." Babette said matter-of-factly. "Ya husband."

Lorelai's face turned pale. She could feel it. "I'm not married." Lorelai told her.

"She's divorced." Ryan said as he made his way past Babette to go outside.

"Oh I'm sorry honey. That's probably why you moved here. To get a fresh start."

"That's the plan."

"Well I'm sorry for bringing it up. Never again. And I'll make sure the whole town knows not to bring it up."

"Oh that's okay. You don't have to do that."

"Oh consider it done." Babette touched her on the shoulder. "I really think the four of you are going to love it here. If you need anything just let me know."

"We sure will."

Babette walked out of the house. Lorelai and the girls followed her. Ryan was sitting on the porch steps. Lorelai joined him, and then the girls followed suit.

"She was really happy mommy." Ruby laughed.

"Yeah baby. She was." Lorelai tapped Ryan's leg. "I really think we are going to like it here."

"Yeah." Ryan grumbled.

At least he gave her somewhat of an acknowledgement.

"I think so too, mom." Rory rested her head on Lorelai's shoulder.

Lorelai smiled. Everything would be okay because they had each other. That was all they ever needed.

* * *

 **Let me know if I should continue.**


	2. No Hard Feelings

Disclaimer: I don't own Gilmore Girls or the characters. It would be really cool if I did.

Synopsis: What if Lorelai had been pregnant with twins? What if she and Christopher had gotten married? What if they had another child years later? How would things turn out for her and the kids. This is my take on that idea.

AN: Thank you all so much for all the reviews, follows, and faves. Ya'll are awesome, and I hope you continue to enjoy the story.

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2: No Hard Feelings**

It had been three days since Lorelai and the kids had moved to Stars Hollow. They had spent the time unpacking. Lorelai was happy the furniture finally came and the kids didn't have to sleep in sleeping bags on the floor anymore.

Rory and Ryan were given permission to explore the town as long as they stayed together. Ruby, on the other hand, was not happy that she couldn't tag along with her older siblings. 'Not fair', 'Boring', and 'Uncool' were just a few of the phrases she used to describe her dissatisfaction of the situation.

She was now standing in front of the Independence Inn with Lorelai. "This is soo boooring." She made sure to drag out the so and the boring for dramatic effect.

Lorelai turned around and knelt down so that she was eye to eye with her little girl. "Ruby, I'm going to need you to be my sweet girl today."

Ruby kept her pouty face.

"It is very important that mommy gets this job. Actually everything is riding on me getting this job. I don't have any other plans or options. So please be good and sweet. If I get it, I will get you the biggest ice cream sundae you've ever had." Lorelai was not against bribery, if it worked.

Ruby put her hands on her hips. She wasn't impressed. "What if they don't have ice cream in this town? I haven't seen any yet." She asked.

"Oh Ruby, please," Lorelai put her head in her hands. It was her fault Ruby was so damn attentive. It was exactly how she was raising her to be. Lorelai looked back at her daughter. "I can almost guarantee that this town has ice cream. You have to trust me on that, okay." She felt like she was saying that an awful lot lately. She hoped all of her children trusted her to make the right decisions for their family.

Ruby nodded.

"Alright, let's do this." Lorelai grabbed her hand and led her into the Inn. She took it all in.

It was exactly how she imagined it would be. Perfect. "I want you to take this bag of fun things and sit on that couch right over there." She pointed to the couch in the center of the room. "Don't move and don't talk to anyone." Lorelai told her as she kissed her forehead. Fortunately, Ruby did as she was told.

Lorelai took a deep breath and exhaled, as she made her way to the front desk, where a grumpy young man was handing out room keys.

"Hi," Lorelai greeted him.

He looked up from his notebook and then back down without speaking to her.

Lorelai rolled her eyes. Of course this wasn't going to be easy. She really wasn't in the mood to deal with a jerk. "Yes. Excuse me." She tried to get him to look up at her but to no avail. "I think I need your help."

"Are you checking in?" He asked with his deep French accent, still not looking up from his notebook.

"No. I'm actually looking for Mia."

"Oh well then you don't need my help. My job is to check people in and answer the phone. But I do not have to help you find Mia. Not in my job description." The man said rudely without ever looking up at her. "Goodbye now." He finally looked up and flashed her a sheepish smile.

"Excuse me!" Lorelai was fed up. Most days she would let this go, but today was not most days. "Hey," she leaned over the desk and pulled his shirt so that she could see his name tap. "Michel." She didn't care if she pronounced it right or not.

"Hey!" Michel exclaimed. "Get your hands off of me. You are invading my personal space and I don't appreciate it."

"I don't appreciate your disgraceful attitude. You don't have to be a jerk just because you can." Lorelai growled at him. "You are the first person that people see when they come into the Inn. You are the first person they talk to, and you should at least be respectful to them." Lorelai didn't realize that people were not looking at her. Everyone but Ruby, who was focused on her bag of fun. "You never know what a person is going through and how your words will affect the rest of their day. It may not be your job to find Mia for me, but I'm pretty sure being nice is a part of your job description. And if it isn't then this is not I place I would ever want to work." She shook her head and let out a loud sigh.

"Are you finished humiliating yourself?" Michel asked as he pointed to all the staring eyes.

Lorelai looked around and composed herself to the best of her ability. 'Great,' she thought. She was not making a very good first impression on her new town. But she was not going to let Michel ruin her day. "Only if you are going to help me."

"Excuse me," A woman tapped on her shoulder.

"Hi," Lorelai gave her a nervous look.

"I think you may be looking for me. I'm Mia." She extended her hand, and Lorelai nervously shook it.

She dropped her head in embarrassment. The person who was supposed to give her a job had just seen her have a meltdown. She could feel Michel's eyes smirking at her. "Oh no." Lorelai ran her fingers through her hair and began nervously fidgeting. "I should just go. I'm sorry for causing a scene." She turned towards Ruby.

"Wait a minute." Mia stopped her. "I thought I heard you say you were looking me Mia. Well I'm Mia."

"Yes. But I think I just realized I need to go hang myself instead." Lorelai only half-joked.

Mia looked at Michel. "Not a word." She warned him. She looked at Lorelai. "Why don't you follow me?"

"Really?" Lorelai was surprised.

"Yes." Mia pointed to the hallway that Lorelai assumed led to her office.

Lorelai started to follow her. "Oh wait. My daughter is right over there."

"Oh not a problem. Michel will watch her. Right Michel." She dared him to say no with one look.

"Of course, Mia." He glared at Lorelai. He didn't know why she was here, but he hoped that she didn't stay.

She was sure that she was never going to get a job now. It was waste of time. Her mother would be so embarrassed of the way she had acted.

They walked into a small office. Mia made her way behind her desk and gestured for Lorelai to sit down. "What is your name, sweetheart?"

"Oh it is Lorelai. Lorelai Gilmore."

"That is such a beautiful name." Mia told her.

"Thank you. I've always been a fan of Gilmore. My ex-husband wasn't too happy when we got married and I told him that I wasn't changing my last name. My mother said it was absurd, and that to be a good wife you should take your husbands last name. But I didn't agree. I don't think your last name makes you a good or bad wife. I mean we got a divorce so maybe it was a bad omen, or maybe it was because we got married at seventeen. In my opinion it should be illegal to get married that young, even if you do get pregnant. With twins at that. But just because you get pregnant does not mean that you should be forced to get married. I knew the marriage wasn't going to work. Maybe that was why I didn't change my name or let my twins take his name. Gilmore is a good strong name. It makes me feel good about myself. And my kids look like Gilmore's. I should have let my six year old take the name. But I was married when she was born so she took his last name. Hayden. It is a good name, but it isn't as good as Gilmore. Ruby Hayden is cute though. She is a sweet girl. A little sassy but sweet all at the same time." Lorelai finally took a breath.

Mia stared at Lorelai. She was amazed by how fast the young woman could speak.

"Oh God," Lorelai realized she had been babbling. "I am so sorry. I think I'm nervous."

"Don't apologize to me. I think you are very lovely."

"You don't think I'm crazy?" Lorelai was surprised when Mia shook her head. "That's good."

"So tell me Lorelai, what brings you here to see me?"

Lorelai paused to compose herself. She wanted to make sure that she said the right things and didn't scare Mia any more than she already had. "I saw an ad in the paper that you were looking for an Events Planner." Lorelai took a folder out of her bag and handed it to Mia. "I planned a ton of events back in Hartford. I was the go to party planner for all of my mother's friends." Lorelai felt like she sounded like a teenager. "I helped with the annual DAR bash. There were over a thousand people there one year."

"This is a nice portfolio."

"Thank you." Lorelai had worked really hard even if she had only gotten the jobs because of who her mother was. After she got married, Emily wanted Lorelai to focus on her kids and husband. It was only after Rory and Ryan started school that Emily asked Lorelai to help her out at the DAR functions. Once the ladies of the DAR saw what Lorelai could do, she booked more jobs. She actually fell in love with party planning. But honestly she had a fascination with Inns. It was a dream for her to own her on one day.

"You really seem great."

"Oh no." Lorelai could feel it. "You don't like me."

"That's not it at all." Mia informed her. "I love you. I think you are a breath of fresh air. And I love how you handled Michel out there. I wish other people could handle him like that."

"But."

"But I decided not to hire an Events Planner."

"Oh." Lorelai looked devastated. She had no backup plan. "I understand."

"Actually no one knows this, but I am planning on moving to North Carolina hopefully within the next one to two years. I have decided to hire someone to shadow me and take over in my absence."

"Like a manager?"

"Yes. A manager in training. That person would help with the events planning as well as everything else."

"I completely understand, Mia." Lorelai stood up. "I know I don't qualify for that position. I am sorry for taking up your time. And again I am sorry for my outburst."

"Wait a minute," Mia stopped her once again. "I want to ask you something."

"Okay." Lorelai turned to face Mia.

"Why did you come to Stars Hollow?"

Lorelai sat back down. "It seemed like a really good place to raise my kids and make a change for myself. I have actually wanted to come to Stars Hollow since I found out that I was pregnant. Instead I chose to get married, even though I knew it wasn't going to work out. I should have trusted my instincts. I wonder how different my life might be had I moved here fourteen years ago, but there is nothing I can do about that now." Lorelai sighed. "You know I want to be my own person. I want to prove to myself that I can do this. I don't think anyone believes in me, but that's okay. I believe in myself. And even though this job didn't work out, I know I will find something. I will do great things for myself and for my kids. I want to give them the best possible life, and I think that I can do that here."

"You're hired." Mia told her.

"What?" Lorelai didn't think she heard her correctly.

"I want you to be my new manager."

"I'm not qualified." Lorelai was shocked.

"When I came here, I wasn't qualified either. I came here looking for a change and wanting the best possible life for myself and for my family. Stars Hollow was my saving grace." Mia smiled. "And it will be yours too."

"Are you serious?"

Mia nodded. "Yes. I want you to be my manager. And if there is anything I can do for you and your kids, you better not hesitate to ask."

"I can't believe this." Lorelai had tears forming in her eyes. "I won't let you down."

"I know you won't. I have a good feeling about you, Lorelai." Mia stood up and walked to where Lorelai was sitting. Lorelai stood up and hugged her.

"Thank you so much." Lorelai hugged her twice.

"All anyone ever needs is a chance to prove themselves. I truly believe that."

Lorelai couldn't believe this was happening.

"You can come back tomorrow, and we can discuss all the details then."

Lorelai nodded.

"Let's go tell your sweet daughter."

"She's going to be excited. She gets ice cream."

"I know the perfect place for ice cream."

Lorelai and Mia started to leave the office. "Oh and Lorelai I didn't tell you the best part."

"What's that?"

"You'll be Michel's boss."

Lorelai couldn't stop smiling. This day had gotten so much better.

As they walked around the corner, Lorelai let out a loud laugh. Ruby was sitting at the desk with Michel. She had put jewelry on him and was showing her all of her ponies.

"Ruby bear," Lorelai said as she continued to laugh at Michel. "Thank you for keeping her company." She told the mean Frenchman.

"I had no choice." Michel looked at Mia. "You can take your child now. I need to get back to my real duties. That does not include playing with a child."

"Oh Michel you and Ruby are going to be the best of friends." Mia told him and smiled at Lorelai.

"And why is that?" Michel's smile began to fade.

"I'm the new manager. Lorelai Gilmore." Lorelai said with glee.

Michel's jaw dropped. 'Oh hell no,' he thought to himself.

"But no hard feelings about earlier. I'm sure we are going to be the best of friends." Lorelai tapped his shoulder.

"You got a job, mommy."

"I sure did, sweetie pie." Lorelai picked up her daughter. "This is Ms. Mia."

"Hi, Ms. Mia." Ruby smiled at her. "Thanks for giving my mommy a job. She is the very best around."

Michel rolled his eyes.

"I have a feeling you are right about that." Mia told her. "And your mommy told me that you wanted ice cream. Do you want to come with me to find the best ice cream in town?"

"Yes." Ruby exclaimed. "Ice cream is the best."

"I would have to agree with you."

Lorelai set Ruby down, and they followed Mia into what looked like the kitchen.

They heard a lot of noise. "Sookie," Mia called out.

'What is a Sookie,' Lorelai thought to herself.

"Oh Sookie." Mia walked around the island to find Sookie sitting on the ground holding a watermelon. "Sookie, darling, what are you doing?"

"Oh Mia hi. I was talking to the watermelon."

"What?" Lorelai said out loud.

Sookie looked up at her. "Hi."

"Hi. I'm Lorelai." She bent down to where Sookie was sitting. "That's a nice watermelon. I've never talked to my watermelon, but I like to sing to my peaches." Lorelai joked.

"Oh me too," Sookie, however, was not joking. "It is much better to sing to peaches than to merely talk to them. I sing to the grapes too."

Lorelai smiled. "I'll have to try that next time."

"Excuse me." Ruby sat down beside Sookie. "I was told there would be ice cream in here."

"That is right, Sookie. I was hoping you had some of that homemade ice cream left."

"Oh yes." Sookie held out her hands for Mia and her helping hand, Jose, to help her up. They did just that, with a little help from Lorelai.

"My mom promised me a sundae. Can you make me a sundae?"

"I can make you the world's best sundae." Sookie smiled. She walked over to the freezer. "So who are you?" She looked at Lorelai.

"Sookie this is Lorelai Gilmore and her daughter Ruby. Lorelai is going to train to be our new manager."

"Oh wow. That's great. You look like a great manager. I have a feeling about it. And my feelings are never wrong." Sookie turned around and hit her head on the freezer door.

Lorelai and Ruby both jumped in pain for her.

"I'm alright. I'm alright. How did that door get there?" She laughed. "Come on cutie patootie. We are going to make a sundae that's going to have so much sugary goodness in it that it will be illegal."

"Cool." Ruby followed Sookie around the counter.

Lorelai smiled.

"I think she likes it here." Mia told her.

Lorelai nodded. "She's not the only one."

* * *

Let me know what you thought! Our favorite Diner owner makes an appearance in the next chapter!


	3. George Clooney Coffee

Disclaimer: I don't own Gilmore Girls or the characters. It would be really cool if I did.

Synopsis: What if Lorelai had been pregnant with twins? What if she and Christopher had gotten married? What if they had another child years later? How would things turn out for her and the kids. This is my take on that idea.

I hope you all enjoy this update! We meet Luke, Jess, and Lane!

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 3: George Clooney Coffee**

Rory and Ryan were walking through the streets of Stars Hollow. Ryan was being as quiet as usual. "I need coffee and a lot of it if I'm going to put up with you all day." Rory told him.

"You don't have to put up with me. We can go our separate ways and meet back up at home." Ryan told her.

"Mom said we had to stick together." Rory reminded him.

"She said that we could go into town together, but she didn't say that we had to stay together." Ryan said remembering the conversation.

"You know what she meant, Ryan."

Ryan shrugged. He didn't feel like arguing with Rory. It was usually a waste of breath. All the women in his family could argue with the best of them.

"I really do need coffee." Rory pointed at Luke's Diner. "I bet I can get it there. Let's go to Luke's Diner."

"I don't want to go. I don't need coffee."

"We can get breakfast."

"I'm not hungry."

"Ryan," Rory said exasperated. "Please."

"You go. I'm going to sit at the gazebo. I promise. I'll be there after you finish your coffee and breakfast."

"Okay." Rory agreed. "Don't leave the gazebo."

"Sure thing, mom." Ryan said sarcastically as he made his way to the gazebo.

Rory entered Luke's Diner for the first time. It smelled of grease and coffee, a combination of smells that weren't that great, but to Rory it smelled nice. It smelled better than any of the places she had been to in Hartford. They were always so stuffy. She had grown accustomed to that lifestyle, but for some reason Rory liked how she felt in the small diner. It felt like home. It felt like freedom.

"Hi," she said as she made her way to the counter.

A man, probably a little older than her mother, turned around. He was wearing a red baseball cap backwards on his head. He had a notepad in his hand and a grumpy look on his face. "What can I get ya?"

"Coffee," Rory said with a happy smile on her face. The coffee smell was stronger than the grease so she knew that it was going to be good.

"No way," the man shook his head.

"What?" Rory was surprised by his response.

"How old are you? Twelve."

"I'm fourteen."

"I can't serve you coffee." He told her.

"Coffee isn't like alcohol. There isn't an age limit. You can't refuse to serve me coffee." Rory argued.

"I'm the owner. I don't have to serve you coffee."

"So you're Luke?" She asked.

"Yes." Luke answered.

"Well Luke, I want coffee." She pulled money out of her wallet. "I'm a paying customer."

"Does your mother know that you're here asking for coffee?"

"I don't think she knows that I'm here at this very place at this very moment asking for coffee. But she practically put coffee in my baby bottle."

"So she condones this behavior?" He asked. Still amazed by the young girl standing in front of him. She looked much younger than fourteen and seemed smarter than most kids he had been around. A lot older than his fifteen year old nephew, Jess.

"Asking for coffee is not bad behavior." Rory couldn't believe this. "You really won't serve me coffee?"

He shook his head. "You can order anything else. It will even be on the house, but I can not support a coffee addiction at such a young age. I will not be an enabler."

"Fine." Rory sighed. "Can I get chili fries?"

Luke's face looked even more disgusted than when she asked for coffee.

"What's wrong with chili fries? It is right here on your menu." She pointed it out for him.

"It is only ten o' clock." He reminded her.

"Do you not serve chili fries now? The menu clearly says that you serve everything on the menu all day long." Rory was getting frustrated with Luke.

"That's true, but wouldn't you rather have oatmeal or fruit."

She shook her head. "I don't like oatmeal, and I'm not really a big fan of fruit either. Unless it is on top of ice cream and chocolate sauce."

Luke laughed out loud. "What's your name?"

"Rory."

"I'll tell you what, Rory. I like you." He couldn't believe he had said it out loud. He wasn't a fan of most kids, but there was something about Rory that he liked. He could tell there was something special about her. "I'm going to get you a cup of coffee. A small cup. And I'll bring you some waffles with strawberries and my special syrup."

"Really?"

"Yes. You can go sit right over there."

"Thanks, Luke." Rory walked over to the table Luke had pointed to. She wasn't sure what had changed his mind, and she didn't care. All she cared about was coffee and reading one of the many books she had packed in her bag.

* * *

Outside Ryan was sitting under the gazebo reading. He was trying to focus on his book, but the town was distracting. He closed his book, sat it on the bench, and stood up. He took in the summer breeze for as long as it lasted.

He was mad about being in this town. He was mad about leaving his friends. He was mad at his mom, and he was even mad at his dad. He wanted them to be a family again. He knew that things were never ideal and they were never the perfect family, but that didn't matter to him. It felt normal to have his parents married. He wanted to feel normal again.

"Hey," he heard a voice behind him.

Ryan turned around to see a dark headed boy about his age standing behind him. "Hi," Ryan said casually and slightly annoyed that he had been taken away from his thoughts.

"I'm Jess." The boy told him. "I'm guessing you are new in town."

"You guessed right."

"Attitude. I like it." Jess titled his head to assert his coolness. "Are you going to tell me your name?"

"Ryan." He said in hopes that Jess would go away.

"I was new not too long ago. And it can be a total bummer." Jess admitted.

"Yeah." Ryan rolled his eyes. "I'm kind of busy here." Ryan wasn't interested in making friends.

"I can see." Jess said sarcastically. "You want to go exploring. My uncle said I didn't have to work today." He pointed to the diner. "Luke is my uncle."

"Okay." Ryan said vaguely.

"Okay you want to go exploring?" Jess asked.

"No. I'm going to stay here."

"Oh come on." Jess tapped him on the shoulder. "I can show you all the cool places you can go when you want to escape the town."

"I don't know you."

"You'll know me better if we hangout. I'm not one that usually cares to make friends." Jess told him. "But when I saw you over here by yourself, it made me think of how I felt when I came to this town. I hated it with a passion. I thought maybe we could hate it together."

Ryan thought about it for a moment. He looked at the diner. Rory would be mad at him. His mom would be mad at him. But in the moment he didn't care who would be mad at him. He could use a place to escape. "Cool. Let's go." He said.

"Sweet." Jess clapped his hands together and jumped off the gazebo. Ryan followed him.

* * *

Back in the diner, Rory had finished her breakfast. It was delicious. The coffee was probably the best coffee she had ever had.

Luke came back to her table. "Are you all finished?"

"Yes." Rory smiled. "Unless you are willing to give me another cup of coffee." She gave her best puppy dog face possible.

"Not a chance." Luke said as he took her plate. "Come back in a couple of weeks, and I might give you another cup."

"Oh no way. I'm coming back tomorrow. My mom is going to love this place. She is going to be sad that she hasn't had this coffee in her life."

"It's that good?" Luke asked surprisingly.

"Have you never tasted it?"

"I hate coffee." Luke admitted.

"Bite your tongue." Rory gasped. "My mom will be shocked that there is someone on this planet that doesn't like coffee."

"You people like coffee that much?"

"I think my mom would marry it if she could…especially this coffee." Rory took her final sip. "It's the George Clooney of coffee."

Luke laughed. He had never heard anything so absurd and funny at the same time. He liked Rory. There should be more kids like her. "Alright kid. Let me know if you need anything else." He turned to head back to the counter.

"Hey Luke," Rory stopped him from leaving. "Do you have kids?"

Luke thought it was a silly question. "No but I do raise my nephew Jess."

Rory grinned. "He's lucky. Even though you are a little grumpy, I think you would make a really good dad." Rory was a little shy, but there was something about Luke. She immediately felt like she could trust him.

"Thanks, Rory. Today is on the house." He reminded her. "I've got a new customer policy. You'll have to bring your mom next time."

"You can count on it." Rory smiled.

Luke headed to the counter.

Rory grabbed her things. She couldn't wait to tell Ryan about the awesome breakfast he had missed because he was sulking like a two year old. He was more dramatic than Ruby.

She headed out of the diner and looked at the gazebo where Ryan should have been. "Oh no." she walked over to the gazebo to see that her brother was missing. She looked around and didn't see him. She should have known that he would do this to her.

She looked at the bench where she saw his book, and a girl about her age removing what looked like a CD from underneath the bench.

"Oh hey." The young girl said when she noticed Rory.

"Hi." Rory said softly, trying to assess the situation.

"Oh don't worry about me. I'm not doing anything illegal." The girl told her. "Well my mom might think it was illegal but then again she thinks all music is of the devil unless it comes from a hymnal, and even some of those can be questionable."

"Oh." Rory didn't know what to say.

"I know. I seem crazy, but I'm actually a normal teenage Korean girl rebelling against my strict, overbearing, religious mother." She babbled on. "I'm Lane by the way."

"I'm Rory."

"That's an awesome name. You should be in a band with a name like that. I'm going to start one eventually. You can be in mine."

"I have no musical abilities." Rory let her know. "I could be your groupie." She smiled. She liked Lane.

"Oh wow!" Lane jumped up. "I have always wanted one of those. This is so awesome. Once I start a band you will be the first to know."

"Cool."

"So…" Lane sat down on the bench. "I've never met you before. This town is pretty small and although I don't know everyone because I lead a pretty sheltered life, I feel like I would know you if you had been here for a while."

"I've been here three days." Rory said as she sat beside her, momentarily forgetting about her brother. "I'm from Hartford."

"What brings you to Stars Hollow?"

"My mom said that she has always wanted to come here. She said it seems like a great place to raise a family."

"I like it here. It is a little weird, but you'll never meet a better group of weirdos." Lane laughed. "So is it just you and your parents?"

Rory shook her. "I have a twin brother and a little sister. And my dad didn't come with us." Rory told her. "My parents are divorced."

"Oh I'm sorry." Lane didn't know how she was supposed to respond. Her parents were happily married, and she knew they would never get divorce. Her mother did not believe in divorce.

"It's okay." Rory shrugged. "It was for the best. My dad was hardly ever around anyway. I just wished my brother felt the same way. He is pretty mad about being here."

"Where is your brother, now?" Lane asked.

"I have no idea. He ran off."

"I could help you look for him." Lane offered.

"It's okay. I wouldn't even know where to start. He knows where we live, and when we are supposed to be home. If he can't figure out then it is on him, and he can deal with our mom." Rory was fed up with her brother. Although, she did not want to upset her mother.

"Well we could hangout until you have to be home. My mom thinks I'm at church."

"Will she look for you?"

Lane shook her head. "Surprisingly she trusts me when I say I'm at church." Lane smiled and handed Rory the CD she had gotten from under the bench. "We can listen to this, and I can show you around town."

Rory liked the sound of that. "Lane, I think this might be the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

"Me too, Rory." Lane was excited. "You know my horoscope said that I would meet a stranger that would become my closest ally."

"Seriously."

"Nope. But it sounded good." Lane laughed.

Even though she had no idea where her brother was, Rory was really enjoying her day. "I agree. That should be the story we tell to people when they ask about how our friendship began."

"I'm down for that." Lane extended her hand and Rory shook it in solidarity.

* * *

Jess and Ryan were sitting on the Stars Hollow Bridge staring at the water. "This is my favorite place to be."

"It is nice."

"It is the only place where I don't feel like I'm being watched."

"It is definitely a small town."

"Yeah no kidding. I'm from New York."

"Hartford." Ryan told him.

"So why did you move here?"

Ryan shrugged. "My mom wanted to."

"You didn't?" Jess could already tell what the answer was going to be.

"Nope. I was happy in Hartford." That wasn't exactly true, but it sounded good.

"What about your dad?"

"Who knows where my dad is," Ryan said sadly. "My mom wanted a divorce. It was all final about two years ago, and he's called a handful of times since he moved out. I think he is in London. It really sucks."

"I know how you feel. I don't know my dad." Jess admitted. "He has never been in the picture, and my mom couldn't deal with a kid. My Uncle had to take me in because I got into some trouble. It really sucked at first, but it isn't so bad now. At least I know that my Uncle Luke cares about me."

"Yeah." Ryan sighed. "That's nice."

"Maybe you'll change your mind about this place."

"I doubt it." Ryan was sure of that. "My mom is going to try her best to convince me this is the best place on earth, but I'm not buying it. Besides, once my grandparents get back from vacation and realize we moved, they are going to make us go back to Hartford. They've always controlled my mom, her marriage, and our family. I guess that is what happens when you're loaded."

"I'm surprised they let her get a divorce."

"That was the first time she didn't let them control things. I think she should have given my dad another chance. She was mad that he was never around, but he was just working hard to make money for our family." Ryan took a rock and threw it into the water. "She ruined everything."

Jess stood up. "You want me to show you where the rich people live in Stars Hollow."

"There are rich people here?"

"Well," Jess chuckled. "We have one rich person, Taylor Doose. He owns the market, an ice cream shop, and he is town selectmen. He pretty much runs this town. And he hates when people trespass on his property."

"Maybe we shouldn't do it." Ryan thought. He didn't want to get into trouble.

"We won't get caught." Jess told him. "You want to check it out?"

Ryan nodded. "Sure. Why not?" Ryan followed Jess to Taylor Doose's house.

* * *

Lorelai and Ruby walked into the house. They had gone into town after eating ice cream with Sookie and Mia. Lorelai had picked up some groceries and was going to try her best to cook a celebratory dinner. She couldn't wait to tell Ryan and Rory her good news. "Alright, love bug." She told Ruby. "You got into your room and take a nap."

"But mommy," Ruby began to complain, but Lorelai gave her the best mom look she could muster. "Okaaay." Ruby dragged out her words as she gave her a hug. "I'm proud of you mommy. You are going to be the best boss ever."

"Thanks, baby." Lorelai was so happy. She felt like everything was going to work out for the best. It was a good decision to move. She was sure of it.

Ruby went into her room and shut the door.

Lorelai was sure that she wouldn't actually take a nap but hopefully she would get a little bit of rest.

She unloaded her groceries and made herself a cup of coffee. She looked at her watch. Rory and Ryan should be home soon. She couldn't wait to hear about their day getting to know the town.

A few minutes later, Lorelai heard the door open. "Rory, Ryan," she called out. "I'm in here."

"Mom," Rory walked into the kitchen alone. Lorelai looked around her to see if Ryan was behind her. "He isn't with me." Rory admitted, knowing Lorelai was looking for her brother.

"What?" Lorelai stood up, her nerves beginning to rise. "Where is he?"

"I don't know where Ryan is." Rory looked away from her mother as she said it. She felt guilty. She should have looked for him before coming home.

"I don't understand. I told the two of you to stay together." Lorelai walked into the foyer. "Why didn't you stay together?"

"I wanted to go to the diner for breakfast, but Ryan didn't want to go. He said he would wait for me under the gazebo, but when I left the diner he wasn't there."

"Did you look for him? How long have you been separated? I don't know where to look either. Oh my God. I shouldn't have let the two of you go off without me. It seems like a nice town but what if someone took him?" Lorelai rambled off.

Rory didn't know which question to answer first.

"Well," Lorelai looked at her daughter.

"I didn't know where to look." Rory admitted. "I left him about ten."

Lorelai sighed loudly. She couldn't believe this. "Rory."

"I know, mom. I'm really sorry."

"You should have found me as soon as you lost him. Only God knows where he could be." Lorelai picked up the phone, but Ryan didn't have a cellphone. She felt like the kids were entirely too young to have a phone, but maybe she was wrong about that decision. She didn't know anyone in town. She had no idea who she could call for help. Maybe Mia or Sookie, but they didn't know Ryan.

Lorelai looked at her daughter. "Rory, I don't know what to do. I am so…" Before she could finish her thought there was a knock at the door. Lorelai looked at Rory, neither one of them was expecting anyone.

Lorelai opened the door to see a police officer standing on her porch with Ryan. She shook her head and stared at her son. He couldn't look at his mother. He knew he was in big trouble.

* * *

 **I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and continue to like the story.**


	4. The Kid Whose Mother Will Kill Him

I hope you all are still enjoying this story. I sure am having fun writing it.

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 4: The Kid Whose Mother will Kill Him**

Lorelai stared at the police officer who was standing next to her son. Anger was running through her body, especially once she realized he wasn't hurt.

"Are you Mrs. Gilmore?" the officer asked.

"Ms." She corrected him. "But yes I am Ms. Gilmore. And it looks like you've got my kid." She looked at Ryan. He still was unable to look at her. "What did he do?" She asked with her arms crossed.

"Well ma'am we caught him and his friend trespassing on Mr. Doose's property. He is a pretty big deal in town. He has a sign, and he calls us every time he catches someone on his property. He didn't press charges, but next time might be a different story. You never know with Mr. Doose."

"Oh no worries. There will not be a next time." She said as she looked at her son. "Officer…" She tried to find his name.

"Wright." He told her. "I'm Officer Wright." He smiled.

"I can promise you that this will not happen again." She pulled Ryan gently into the house. "Wait one second." She told the officer. She walked over to the desk, grabbed a piece of paper and pen, and wrote something down. "Here you go." She handed it to him.

"What is this ma'am?"

"That is my number, and if you ever see Ryan Gilmore…" She pointed to Ryan. "Doing anything that could get him into trouble, you are to call me immediately."

"Yes ma'am."

"To get his attention, you can call him Ryan, Christopher Ryan, Gilmore, or hey kid whose mom will kill him if he gets into any more trouble…He will answer. I promise."

Officer Wright chuckled. "Yes ma'am. I'll keep an eye on him."

"Thank you. I will be forever indebted to you." Lorelai smiled at him.

"Don't be too hard on him ma'am. Taylor Doose is a pill." He told her.

"Thank you, officer."

Officer Wright walked away, and Lorelai shut the door and sighed. She turned to face Ryan who had walked further into the living room.

Rory had also followed him. "You got arrested?" She yelled at him. "How stupid do you have to be?" Rory was furious with her brother.

"I didn't get arrested." Ryan corrected her. "No one pressed charges."

"That does not matter." Rory yelled at him again. "We are new in this town. You are giving this family a bad name."

"You sound like grandma." Ryan snapped at her.

"You should be ashamed of yourself."

"Okay, Rory." Lorelai touched her shoulder. "Could you please go into the kitchen?" She wasn't asking and Rory knew that.

"Okay." She glared at her brother as she walked away.

"Care to explain yourself?" Lorelai asked as she crossed her arms. She was angry but relieved that he was okay.

"I wasn't arrested." He shrugged.

"Uh huh." Lorelai shook her head. "That answer isn't going to cut it. You were supposed to stay with your sister and next thing I know you are being brought home by the police."

"I didn't think you really meant that."

"Are you kidding me?" Lorelai yelled at him. "You knew what I meant."

"It's not a big deal, mom. I wasn't arrested."

"Ah," Lorelai sighed loudly in frustration. "You keep saying that, but it is only because you got lucky. Why were you on that man's property? And who is your friend? We have only been here for three days. You know that you aren't supposed to go off with someone I don't know."

"You don't know anyone in this stupid town. What am I supposed to do? Remain friendless."

"No," Lorelai shook her head. "You know I want you to make friends. I want you to like Stars Hollow."

"That's not going to happen." Ryan walked towards the stairs.

"I'm not done talking to you." She stopped him as she walked closer to the stairs.

"I don't know what else to say." Ryan leaned against the banister. "I want to go back to Hartford."

"I know that. I understand that you are mad at me. But that doesn't give you permission to leave your sister, go off with someone I don't know, and trespass on someone's property. I didn't move you here so that you could cause trouble."

Ryan rolled his eyes.

"Who were you hanging out with?" She asked again.

"You don't know him." Ryan smarted off at her.

Lorelai glared at him. It was taking everything in her not to strangle him, and she had never been a violent woman. "Ryan!"

"His name is Jess."

"Is that all that you know about him?"

"He lives with his Uncle Luke, and Luke owns the diner. It is conveniently named Luke's."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Ryan this attitude of yours needs to go. I don't care how mad you are at me. That does not give you the right to be disrespectful to me or anyone else for that matter."

"Okay," Ryan sighed.

"I got the job today." Lorelai decided to change the subject.

"Oh good." He said sarcastically. He could tell he had hurt his mom's feelings. He felt bad, but he was still mad.

"Thank you." Lorelai matched his sarcasm. "By the way I'm not letting you out of my sight. You are going with me to the Inn tomorrow." She informed him.

"What? Mom, that isn't fair." Ryan pouted.

"You were brought home by a police officer. I can't trust you. Therefore, you can go with me to the Inn until I can trust you."

"Ugh. I hate this." He stomped off upstairs.

"Yes. Go to your room and think about what you have done." She yelled at him awkwardly.

She sighed as she sat on the steps.

Rory walked into the room after she heard her brother's door slam. "Mom."

Lorelai looked up at her daughter.

"I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have left him." Rory felt guilty.

"It's okay, sweetie. I can't expect you to watch your brother 24/7." Lorelai patted the seat next to her and Rory joined her on the stairs. "Tell me about your day."

"I had fun. I met a new friend, Lane. Her parents own the antique store in town. Lane said you could meet her mom tomorrow if you wanted too."

"I will meet you in town for lunch."

"So I don't have to go to the Inn with you?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No not this time. But you are to check-in with me. Got it."

"Got it." Rory smiled and then hugged her mother. "I'm so proud of you, mom."

"Why?" Lorelai asked.

"You got the job." Rory said excitedly.

"Yes. Well kind of."

"What does that mean?" Rory was confused.

"I'm a manager in training." Lorelai was so happy about it.

"Whoa." Rory was thrilled. "That's better than event planner."

"I think so."

"We have got to celebrate."

"That was the plan." Lorelai said sadly. "I was hoping to celebrate with all my kids."

"You can celebrate with me and Ruby." Rory rested her head on Lorelai's shoulder. "Ryan will get over it. He is a teenage boy. I heard they can be real moody."

Lorelai laughed. "Oh really?"

"Yeah. Boys can be so dramatic. We will help him figure it out."

"Mom," Ruby said as she walked into the living room.

"Hey Ruby. Did you take a nap?"

"Nope. There was too much commotion out here."

Rory and Lorelai both looked at each other. They had no idea where she got some of the things she said.

"Is it time to celebrate?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah. Let's make a celebratory dinner." Lorelai stood up.

"Hey Rory, guess what?"

"What?"

"We had ice cream with Sookie today."

"What's a sookie?" Rory asked. She wasn't familiar with that type of ice cream topping.

"Sookie is a person." Lorelai told her. "She might be the most amazing person on the planet."

"Oh. I can't wait to meet her."

"She makes the best ice cream." Ruby was excited about her new friend.

"And her coffee isn't too bad either."

"Oh that reminds me." Rory remembered. "We have to go to Luke's Diner. He makes the most amazing coffee. I know you are going to love it."

"Is he cute?" Ruby asked.

"Oh Ruby," Rory tickled her little sister. Ruby giggled. Lorelai smiled. At least her daughters seemed happy.

She would definitely have to try out the Diner, and meet her son's friend's uncle.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	5. First Impressions

Thanks again for all the reviews, faves, and follows. They all make me so happy.

One reviewed asked about Dean or Jess for Rory. I haven't written Dean into the story yet, but I plan to. I've always been team Jess or team Logan. But you never know.

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 5: First Impressions**

Lorelai had been extremely nervous about her first day of work at the Inn, but it seemed to be going well. Mia was the most kind and understanding woman she had ever met. Every time Lorelai made a mistake, Mia would tell her not to worry and not to be nervous.

Although it hadn't even been a whole day, Lorelai really felt like Mia believed in her. She had never really felt like that before. It was a nice feeling.

Mia had even been understanding about Ryan and Ruby hanging out at the Inn. Ryan on the other hand was in a horrible mood. He had barely said three words to her all morning.

Now he was sitting on one of the couches in the lobby reading a book. She loved that her kids liked to read. Ruby was sitting on the floor next to the couch. She was coloring in her Mickey Mouse coloring book.

She heard Michel make comments about the fact that she brought her children to work with her, and he gave her a week before she quit.

Lorelai knew she would surprise him. She wasn't one to give up. Michel could count on that.

She walked over to the couch and sat next to Ryan. "How's the book?"

Ryan shrugged.

Lorelai sighed. "How long are you going to give me the silent treatment?"

Ryan shrugged again.

"Ryan," she tapped his leg.

He shrugged again.

"Fine," Lorelai stood up, annoyed by his silence. "I just want you to know that you are behaving like a six year old. I already have one of those, and I don't need another one." She kissed Ruby on the forehead. "Sweetie, I have to run into town to meet Rory. Do you want to go with me?"

"Sure." Ruby said as she packed her coloring book into her bag of fun.

"Hey what about me?" Ryan closed his book, finally speaking.

"Oh now he speaks." Lorelai says with her hands on her hips. "I already asked Mia. She said that you could stay here. She actually needs some help loading some boxes in her car. I told her you would be willing to help her with anything that she needed. I also promised her that you would not complain." Lorelai smiled as she saw the look on her son's face. "Don't let me down." She smiled at him.

"Mom, come on."

"I'll bring you back some lunch." Lorelai took Ruby's hand, and they walked toward the exit.

Ryan shook his head. His mom was being so unfair.

* * *

In town, Rory was sitting outside of Kim's Antiques reading a book. Lorelai and Ruby easily found her. Lorelai was surprised to see her outside. "Hey hon, where's your friend Lane?"

"Oh we are not friends." Rory closed her book and stood up. "I want to go back to the Inn with you." Rory started to walk.

"Hey. Hold on. Wait a minute. Did something happen?" Lorelai asked, trying to figure out why the sudden change.

"We just weren't compatible." Rory looked away from her mother as she spoke. Lorelai knew immediately that Rory was lying to her.

"What's going on, sweetie? Did something happen?" Lorelai touched her shoulder. She could tell that Rory was about to cry. "Oh honey." Lorelai wrapped her arms around her daughter. "You can tell me what happened."

"Lane's mom said that we couldn't be friends."

"Why not?"

Rory looked down. She didn't want to tell her mother.

"Either you can tell me, or I can go inside and ask Lane's mother. Either way I'm going to find out. I'd rather hear it from you."

"Shedoesn'tlikeyou." Rory said really fast.

"What?" Lorelai thought she knew what Rory said, but hoped that she had heard her wrong.

"She doesn't like you." Rory said slower.

"She doesn't even know me." Lorelai was angry.

"She told Lane that all unmarried women were the same, and that I was probably a bad kid because I was a child of divorce."

"I am going to kick that woman's ass." Lorelai's blood was boiling.

Mommy!" Ruby exclaimed. "That's one of the no, no words."

"I know, Ruby. I'm sorry." Lorelai began to walk towards the entrance of the antique shop.

"No," Rory grabbed her arm and pulled her back. "You cannot go in there. You will only make it worse."

"I'm not going to let someone talk about me like that, and I'm definitely not going to let her treat my kid that way." Lorelai could not believe the nerve of that woman. And she had never even met her. "You are one of the best kids on the planet. And most days I'm a pretty good mother."

"You are the best." Rory told her. "We know that. That's all that matters."

"That woman is going to know that."

"Please, mom. I'm begging you not to say anything." Rory sounded so nervous.

"Rory," Lorelai was sad for her daughter.

"For me. Don't say anything for me." She pleaded.

Lorelai looked around contemplating her next move. Everything in her wanted to march into that store and let that woman have a piece of her mind, but the look on her daughter's face stopped her. "Fine." She said. "I won't say anything, but Rory you have to know that you are an amazing kid, and anyone would be lucky enough to have you as a friend."

"I know mom." She gave her a hug. "I'm excited about seeing the Inn."

"Yeah." Lorelai smiled. "Let's get some lunch first."

"Can we go to Luke's?" Rory pointed. "I promise it has the best coffee on the planet."

"Then how can I turn that down."

"Can I have coffee?" Ruby asked.

"One day my sweets."

"Oh cool."

"Where's Ryan?" Rory asked.

"Mom's boss was supposed to put him to work." Ruby told her.

Lorelai smiled at her. He youngest daughter never missed a beat.

The girls walked into Luke's Diner. It was pretty busy but then again it was lunch time. Lorelai was interested in meeting Luke, especially if he was the uncle of the kid who had gotten Ryan in trouble.

"We can sit wherever we want." Rory told them, and the girls found a table in the middle of the Diner. "Oh no. I left my bag at the antique shop."

"Oh well we can go back and get it."

"I can go by myself." Rory told her.

"Okay." Lorelai agreed.

"Can I go with you?" Ruby asked.

"Sure." Rory said getting confirmation from her mother's nod.

"I'll go ahead and order." Lorelai said as the girls ran out of the Diner. She looked around trying to see if she could figure out who Luke was. She wanted to talk to him about his nephew.

"Order up." A man shouted as he walked out of the kitchen.

Lorelai was convinced he was Luke. He was wearing a plaid shirt and backwards baseball cap. She stood up and walked to the counter. "Hi."

"Hey." Luke looked up at her. "I'll be with you in a minute." The first thing he thought was how beautiful she was and how he had never seen her in town before. She must be new or just passing through.

"Are you Luke?" She asked.

"Yep." He said quickly. "Like I said, I'll be with you in a moment."

"I actually need to talk to you."

"What?" He asked. He didn't know her. Why would they need to talk?

"My son got into a little trouble yesterday, and I think your nephew, Jess, was involved."

With the mention of Jess, she finally had his full attention. "Oh. Does this have to do with the trespassing? Don't worry about that. Taylor Doose is a jackass."

Lorelai was surprised by his response. "So you didn't do anything about it?"

"No." Luke told her. "Taylor does this kind of thing all the time. It isn't a big deal."

"Ugh." Lorelai was tired of hearing that phrase. "We have only been here a few days, and the first time I let my son out of my sight he was brought home by a police officer."

"Oh yeah, Officer Wright." Luke said casually. "He is used to Taylor too."

"I can't believe you are taking this so lightly." Lorelai was confused. "There was a sign telling them not to go on the property. They shouldn't have gone on the property."

"Well they did." Luke said nonchalantly. "And I'm sure they will again. They will probably do something even worse. When they do, that's when I will be more concerned. But right now I'm trying to run a business."

"Yeah. I can see that. But I'm trying to talk to you about my kid and your nephew." Lorelai crossed her arms across her body. "If they are going to hangout, then I need to make sure that you are going to be more responsible."

"Excuse me." Luke stopped what he was doing. "I am very responsible, especially when it comes to Jess."

"You just said that you didn't care that he got into trouble. That doesn't sound very responsible to me."

"Okay lady, you don't know a damn thing about me." Luke raised his voice. "I take care of my nephew, but even if I didn't that wouldn't be any of your business. If you don't want them to hangout that's fine with me. But don't come in here and try to tell me how to parent. I've been doing just fine without your help." Luke was fed up with her. "Maybe you should look at your parenting skills. Your son was brought home by the police. Maybe it was his idea."

"Oh it wasn't his idea. He doesn't know anything about this town." Lorelai defended her son. This conversation had not gone the way she had expected it to. "I didn't mean to accuse you of anything. I wanted to talk to you as two adults trying to do the best thing for their kids."

"So now you are accusing me of not being an adult."

"No." Lorelai sighed. "That's not what I was trying to do."

"I think you should go."

"We haven't eaten yet."

"I've decided I don't want to feed you today. My business. My choice." Luke told her.

"You are such a jerk." Lorelai yelled at him.

Everyone in the diner was staring at them.

"Mom." Rory and Ruby had made it back.

Lorelai closed her eyes.

"Rory." Luke said. He could never forget Rory.

"Girls. We've got to go." She stared at Luke and then walked out of the Diner.

"We haven't eaten." Rory protested.

"Doesn't matter." Lorelai told her.

Luke couldn't believe that Rory's mother was that woman. How could such a sweet kid have such a rude mom?

Outside, Lorelai was walking quickly through the town. "We can eat somewhere else."

"Mom slow down. What happened?" Rory tried to keep up. Ruby was falling behind. "Mom." Rory yelled.

"That man is a jerk. He thinks it is okay for kids to trespass on property. I can't trust him to keep an eye on Ryan, and I can't trust his nephew either."

"I think you are overreacting." Rory said with her hands on her hips. "Luke is a nice man."

Lorelai shook her head. "We are never going back in there."

Rory rolled her eyes. "Great. Mom, we should just move back to Hartford."

"We are not moving back to Hartford."

"We should. We are ruining every chance we have in this town. I can't hang out with Lane. Ryan can't hang out with Jess. And now we can't go into the Diner. It isn't fair." Rory walked off from her mother.

"Where are you going?"

"Home."

"Rory, come back."

But Rory kept walking. Lorelai looked at her little girl. "Are you mad at me too?"

"Not yet." Ruby smiled.

Lorelai closed her eyes. Nothing was going how she had planned. Maybe Rory was right. Maybe they should move back to Hartford. At least people liked them there.

* * *

 **Uh oh! Luke and Lorelai met!**


	6. He Kicked Me Out

**I am so excited! This time next week we will have seen the Revival. I'm sure all of you are just as excited as I am!**

 **Please let me know what ya think of this, and if there is anything you would like me to write in.**

 **As always thanks for all the feedback and support!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 6: He Kicked Me Out**

Back at the Inn, Ryan had finished helping Mia. He felt like they had moved a thousand boxes. "Thank you so much Ryan." She handed him a bottle of water.

"Thank you." He said as he started to walk away.

"You know I have a son." She started. "We moved to Stars Hollow when he was a little younger than you are. He wasn't all that happy with me about uprooting his life."

Ryan nodded to let her know that he was at least listening.

Mia pointed to the couch and both of them sat down. "I know that kids don't always agree with their parents. My son always thought that I was trying to punish him, but in fact I was trying my best to give him a good life." Mia smiled. "You know the only thing a mother really can do?" She asked.

Ryan shook his head.

"Try." Mia smiled at the young boy. "I think if you give this town a chance you will grow to love it. My son did, and he was sad when he had to leave."

"Why did he leave?" Ryan finally spoke.

"His wife is doctor, and she took a job in North Carolina."

"Oh."

"I think he would have stayed here forever if he could have." Mia stood up. "He gave me a hard time for many years about this town, but he calls me almost every day to check on it. In my lifetime, I have learned that you just have to believe that things will work out the way they are meant to."

Ryan didn't say anything.

"Trust your mother and give her a chance." Mia smiled at him as she walked away.

Lorelai and Ruby walked into the Inn. "You are back." Mia greeted them.

"Yeah mommy was mean to the man at the diner."

"Ruby," Lorelai glared at her.

"You were." Ruby reminded her as she bounced off to bug her brother.

"What happened?" Mia asked.

"I don't want to tell you." Lorelai admitted. "You are going to think that I have a temper problem. Which I didn't know I had until the last few days." She was really feeling embarrassed.

"Come here," Mia led her to some chairs in the corner. "Tell me what happened."

Both women sat down.

"I told you that Ryan got in trouble yesterday."

Mia nodded.

"He was accompanied by a kid named Jess."

"Oh that is Luke's nephew."

"Bingo. And Luke didn't even care that they had gotten into trouble. I can't have my kid around that. I'm trying to straighten him out. I can't have Jess getting him into trouble because he knows there won't be any consequences in his life."

"That's not true Lorelai." Mia told her. "Jess knows all about consequences."

"What do you mean?" She was curious.

"Jess came here about two years ago. His mother wasn't the best role model. She has a lot of problems, and Jess got into some trouble in New York. He was only twelve, but they were going to send him to a juvenile detention center." Mia told her. "Luke agreed to take him in and give him a better life, but Liz, his mother, cannot be involved in his life until she gets her act together. It hasn't always been easy on Jess or Luke, but Luke has really tried his best to make Jess behave and give him a good life."

"But he convinced my son to trespass on someone's property. I'm sure he knew better."

"Oh Lorelai you have to learn that Taylor Doose is a jerk, and he is always trying to get Jess in trouble. He has never liked him. I'm pretty sure that he put that sign up just to cause trouble for the young boy."

"I didn't know that."

"You have only been here a few days, Lorelai. You can't expect to know everything."

"I am such a jerk." Lorelai felt bad. "I made a complete idiot out of myself. I was yelling at him like a crazy lady."

"I'm sure it wasn't that bad."

"He kicked me out of the diner." She dropped her head. She was so ashamed.

"Luke does that all the time. He says he can serve who he wants to serve when he wants to serve them." Mia touched her shoulder. "You shouldn't feel too bad. Luke can be a little grumpy, and he is very sensitive when it comes to Jess. Give it time. I'm sure the two of you will be great friends. You are both trying to do the same thing…raise good humans."

Lorelai smiled. "Thanks, Mia."

"Did Rory not come back with you? I am anxious to meet her."

Lorelai sighed. She had almost forgotten about her thing with Rory. "She was mad at me about the fight with Luke, and she was also upset about Lane."

"What happened with Lane?"

"Her mother said that she could not be friends with Rory because I was divorced."

Mia laughed. "You will have to talk to Mrs. Kim."

"Rory doesn't want me to make a big deal about it." Lorelai stood up. "I really feel like I made a mistake moving here. The Gilmore's have not made a very good impression on this town."

"Lorelai Gilmore," Mia looked at her. "You can't think like that. Look over there." Mia pointed to Ryan and Ruby. They were playing with Ruby's ponies. "I think you are right where you need to be."

Lorelai smiled at her kids. She hoped Mia was right.

"And Lorelai," Mia turned back to her. "Ryan will come around. You have to give him time. But you also have to trust him. He is going to make mistakes. You'll just have to be there for him when he does. Trust me on that."

Lorelai nodded. That was easier said than done.

* * *

Luke walked into his upstairs apartment he shared with Jess. Jess was sitting on the couch watching TV. "Can you shut that off?" Luke asked.

"Why?" Jess asked.

"Because I asked you to." Luke told him and to his surprise Jess turned it off. "Thank you."

"What's going on?"

"I think we should talk about what happened yesterday." Luke sat beside his nephew.

"The thing with Taylor?" Jess asked him confused. "I thought you agreed it wasn't a big deal. It was just Taylor being Taylor."

"I understand that, Jess." Luke fidgeted. "But you have got to stop pissing that man off. I don't want you to be brought home by the police again."

"It was just Officer Wright." Jess was still confused. He thought this had been settled.

"Jess." Luke stood up. "I'm trying to make sure that you stay out of trouble."

"I'm fine." Jess stood up and walked towards his room.

"Jess, I'm not done talking about this." He followed him.

"We talked about it yesterday. You said it was no big deal."

"Anytime you are brought home by a police officer it is a big deal."

"Okay." Jess shrugged. "I get it."

"You have got to stop driving Taylor crazy."

"Uncle Luke you know that man hates me."

"I know, but you've got to promise me that you will lay low."

"Alright." Jess sat on his bed.

"And I don't think you'll be able to hang out with that kid you were with yesterday." Luke couldn't remember Ryan's name. He felt bad having to tell Jess. Ever since Jess moved to Stars Hollow he had a hard time making friends.

"Ryan?" Jess questioned.

"Yeah. You two can't hangout."

"Why not? Yesterday wasn't that big of deal." He sounded like a broken record.

"His mom wasn't happy about him getting in trouble. She thinks you are a bad influence. I'm sorry kid." Luke sat next to him.

"Its fine. I'm used to that." Jess tried to pretend it didn't bother him, but it kind of sucked. He didn't have a whole lot of friends.

"I don't think it is fine. She doesn't know you. I know you, and I know that you are a good kid."

"Really, Uncle Luke. It isn't a big deal. I was just trying to be nice. He seemed a lot like me."

"I can try to talk to his mom again, but she isn't a very understanding woman." Luke remembered his conversation with Lorelai.

Jess shook his head. "Don't worry about it. Can I go hangout at the park?"

"Sure." Luke told him. "Be home by eight."

"Okay."

Luke smiled. He didn't want Jess to be lonely. He wanted people to give him a chance. He was a good kid that had been in a bad situation.

Luke went back downstairs. He saw Rory sitting on one of the barstools. "Rory."

"Luke," She smiled. "I know I'm not supposed to be here. You told my mom that we couldn't eat here anymore."

Luke shook his head. "I didn't know she was your mother at the time. You can eat here whenever you like."

Rory nodded. "Well she is my mom, and I think the two of you got off to the wrong foot. She really is an amazing person."

Luke didn't say anything. He just listened.

"We moved here because my mom wasn't happy in Hartford, and she wants all of us to love Stars Hollow. She doesn't want this move to be a mistake because once my grandparents find out that we moved, they are going to try everything in their power to get us back in Hartford. They have a lot of money, and they are very controlling. My mom is just nervous. And Ryan can be a wild child, and she is worried that he is going to screw up. I think she just took her fears out on you."

"Rory, I don't think she likes me very much." Luke admitted.

Rory shook her head. "I think you two could be the best of friends. She's just bad at first impressions sometimes. She talks a lot, and doesn't always think before she speaks. People can really be put off by it. But I know if she ever tastes your coffee, she is going to love it." Rory smiled. "You should give her another chance." She stood up from her barstool. "Just think about it, okay."

Luke nodded. He would think about it.

Rory walked out of the diner. She hoped that would help out. She really liked Luke, and she loved his coffee.

* * *

Lorelai found herself standing in front of the antique store. She knew Rory would be mad at her, but she couldn't let Mrs. Kim judge her daughter because of her relationship status. Rory was a good kid, and Lane would be lucky to have a friend like Rory.

She took a deep breath before opening the door to the antique store. She couldn't believe how many things were in the store. She could barely move around without hitting something.

"You break it you buy it." A woman popped out of nowhere, startling Lorelai.

"Are you Mrs. Kim?" She asked once she gained her composure.

"Yes. Who wants to know?"

"I'm Lorelai Gilmore." She extended her hand. "I'm Rory's mother."

Mrs. Kim gave her a look and then started to walk away.

"Mrs. Kim, I would like to talk to you." Lorelai followed the woman, trying her best not to knock anything over.

"No need."

"Yes. Please. You have to listen to me."

Mrs. Kim stopped walking and turned to face Lorelai. "You have one minute. Timer starts now."

Luckily for Lorelai she was a fast talker. "I know that you told Lane that she couldn't be friends with Rory because I'm divorced."

"Yes. That is correct."

"Please don't do that." Lorelai sounded more desperate than she originally intended.

"I…" Mrs. Kim was trying to speak.

"Please let me talk and then if you don't like what I have to say then you never have to listen to me again."

"Go on. Minute is ticking away." Mrs. Kim quickly motioned for her to continue.

"I understand that you are concerned about your daughter's well-being. I might be an unmarried divorced woman, but first and foremost I am a mother. I have always put my kids first and tried my best to do right by them. That's why I got divorced and moved them here to Stars Hollow. I want them to grow up in a loving, fun environment. I want them to be surrounded by good kind-hearted people." Lorelai sighed. "But they can't do that if they aren't given a chance because of me." Lorelai never wanted her kids to suffer because of her. "My daughter Rory is the kindest, smartest kid you will ever meet. When she was five she asked me not to buy her any birthday presents and instead buy presents for kids at a homeless shelter. She reads more than anyone I know. Well besides my son Ryan. He reads a lot too. I'm not sure how that happened. But it did. And I'm glad they love to read. But that's beside the point."

"Are you finished?" Mrs. Kim interrupted.

"Almost." Lorelai told her. "I was worried about moving here because I was afraid that my kids wouldn't make friends. Rory came home yesterday, and she was so excited about Lane. I don't think I have ever seen Rory so happy about a friend. I think that Lane and Rory would be lucky to have each other. I can promise you that I will watch out for them. Any rules you have we will follow them. And I will always have your back because that's part of the unspoken mom code." Lorelai hoped that she had gotten her point across.

Mrs. Kim nodded. "Okay."

"Okay? The girls can hangout?" Lorelai wasn't sure.

"Okay I will let you know."

"Okay." Lorelai smiled. "When?"

"When I am ready to let you know." Mrs. Kim said sternly.

"Okay. I'll take it."

"Now I have to get back to work. Your minute is up."

"Of course. Thank you, Mrs. Kim." Lorelai smiled at her. She started to walk away.

"I like that about mom code." Mrs. Kim said before walking out of the room.

Lorelai sighed a breath of relief. She was hopeful that Mrs. Kim would change her mind.

She walked outside as her cell phone rang. It barely ever rang. Only a few people had her phone number.

She looked at the caller ID and her heart sank.

She answered the phone. "Hello Christopher." She said sadly.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	7. Stick Together

**Thanks for all the reviews, follows, and faves! It makes me excited to know people are enjoying the story. And I'm even more excited that this week is Gilmore week! I can't wait until Friday!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 7: Stick Together**

Lorelai was sitting under the gazebo. Her face was red and splotchy from crying. She had talked to Christopher and it had not been a good conversation.

One of the neighbors had called to tell him that his family had moved and the house was up for sale. He was furious that she had not asked him about it first. She said that she did not have to ask his permission and that they hadn't heard from him in months. She didn't even know where he was, and he still didn't tell her.

He was also mad that she was selling the house. Lorelai didn't see the problem. She had gotten the house and the kids in the divorce. It was her house to sale. He reminded her that her parents were going to hate her more than they already did, and once they figured out what happened they would make Lorelai and the kids move back to Hartford. Lorelai argued with him until she couldn't argue anymore.

She asked him to call back later to talk to the kids. He said he was extremely busy with work, and he would call eventually. Lorelai knew that he wouldn't. He would once again let them all down.

Before he hung up he told her she had made a mistake, and she wouldn't make it on her own. She wasn't strong enough.

She was trying her best to control her tears. She needed to grab dinner and head home to the kids. She didn't want them to see her so upset.

Every time she thought about the conversation and everything that happened between her and Christopher over the years, she cried even harder.

"Are you okay?" A voice asked.

Lorelai looked up to see Luke the diner owner standing in front of her. 'Great.' She thought to herself. She didn't want to get into another argument with him.

She wiped her tears. "Yes. I'm fine."

Luke knew she was lying, and he couldn't leave her when she was so upset. Even if they didn't get off on the right foot. He decided to sit down beside her. "Here." He handed her a handkerchief.

She looked up at him, surprised by his kindness. "Thank you." She took the handkerchief and wiped her eyes. "I'm really fine. I will be fine." She admitted.

"This isn't because you and I had a thing today." Luke was nervous. He never wanted to make anyone cry.

"Oh no…no…" Lorelai reassured him. "This has to do with my ex-husband. He let me know how much of a failure as a mother I am. This coming from the man who hasn't been around in ages." Lorelai was so mad, and she wasn't sure why she was telling Luke her business. "As hard as it was to talk to Christopher about moving here, it is going to be even worse to talk to my parents." Lorelai felt the tears falling again. "I think the thing that hurts the worse is that he was probably right. Moving here was a mistake. I've already made a fool of myself more than once, and we haven't even been here a week. We should move back to Hartford." Lorelai admitted.

Luke didn't say anything. He was trying to figure out what he should say.

"I am so sorry about earlier. I overreacted." Lorelai apologized. "I tend to do that when it comes to Ryan. I know that he needs his father, and for that reason, I tried so hard to make my marriage work. I'm so scared that I am going to screw him up."

"You're not going to screw him up." Luke reassured her. "I was a teenage boy, and I screwed up a lot. It should be expected that kids are going to make mistakes." Luke took a moment. "My mom passed away when I was fourteen. She was always giving me a hard time and trying to make me do the right thing. It annoyed the hell out of me, but I would give anything to have her back. For just one more day." Luke wasn't sure why he had just told her about that. He barely talked about his parents to people that he knew, and he didn't know her at all.

Lorelai smiled.

"I don't think that you should move back to Hartford. You should give Stars Hollow a fighting chance. There is no other town like it." Luke smiled at her. "I can promise you that Stars Hollow will give you and your family a chance."

"Thank you for that." Lorelai wiped her tears again. "I really am sorry for the way that I acted. Ryan was probably just as responsible as Jess."

"Yeah I'm sure that's not the case." Luke told her. "Jess does whatever he can to piss Taylor off. I let him do it because Taylor is a jackass, and Jess hasn't had an easy life. I know I let him get away with more than I should, but I don't want him to think that I don't love him. I'm new to this parenting thing. I'm probably screwing it up." Luke sighed. "But there really is no way to know until it is too late."

"I don't know Jess personally, but from what I heard I don't think that you are screwing him up. I've heard you are a good man."

Luke looked at her surprised.

"Mia."

"Oh Mia. She and my mom were really good friends. That's probably why she told you good things about me." He chuckled.

"I think she really believes it."

"Mia is a saint."

Lorelai nodded. "I'm beginning to realize that too."

"You know I should probably get back to the diner."

"And I should get home to my kids." Lorelai told him as they both stood up. "I want Ryan and Jess to be friends." Lorelai thought about Mrs. Kim and what happened with Rory. She didn't want to be that kind of parent. She wanted her kids to make their own mistakes. She would be there to catch them if they fell. "I'm okay with them hanging out."

Luke seemed happy. "I'll always be watching out for them."

"Thank you. Me too."

"You and your kids are always welcome at my diner. Us parents have got to stick together." Luke told her. "Don't let your ex-husband get you down. He isn't here. You are. Everything will be okay." He gave her smile before walking away.

She thought it might be the beginning of a nice friendship.

Luke thought the same thing.

* * *

 **Much shorter chapter. I hope you all enjoyed!**


	8. You're Not Dead

**Sorry I haven't updated in a few days. I promise to do better.**

 **Oh My Goodness! I hope you all enjoyed the revival as much as I did! I don't think I have any tears left!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 8: You aren't Dead**

The next morning Lorelai walked into her kitchen. There were several dishes in the sink and the kids had not cleaned off the table. "Hey guys. Can you come in here please?" She called out for them.

Rory and Ruby walked out of their bedroom, and Ryan came in from the living room.

"Can someone explain all of this?" She pointed to the mess in the kitchen.

All the kids shrugged.

"Words, would be nice." She stood with her arms crossed.

"We figured the maid would get it." Ryan explained.

"What maid?" Lorelai chuckled.

"Iris." Ruby said. "We like Iris."

"Your grandmother hired Iris. Iris didn't come with us to Stars Hollow."

"Can we hire a new Iris? Grandma does it all the time." Ryan asked.

"No." Lorelai exclaimed. "We don't need a maid. We are all capable of cleaning up after ourselves." She pointed to the mess. "I want all of this cleaned up before you go anywhere today, and I do not want it to get like this again."

"I thought I had to go with you." Ryan was confused.

"Not today." Lorelai poured herself a cup of coffee.

"Really?"

"You are allowed to explore the town, but you are to check-in with me every couple of hours." Lorelai took a sip of her coffee.

"Awesome." Ryan said happily.

"I mean it, Ryan. You are to check-in with me. And you are not to get into any kind of trouble." Lorelai hoped that she wasn't making a mistake. "Or I will permanently attach you to my hip. I don't think you will appreciate that once you get older. Trust me.

"I got it. No trouble. And thanks, mom." Ryan gave her a hug, something that took Lorelai by surprise. "What about Jess? Can I hang out with him?"

"Yes."

Rory looked at Lorelai. She was surprised after Lorelai's outburst with Luke. They hadn't talked about it when Lorelai had finally gotten home.

"Oh and Rory I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Okay."

Before Lorelai could say anything else, the phone rang.

Rory answered the phone. "Hello." Rory smiled. "Hey Lane. Yeah. I'll ask my mom." Rory turned to Lorelai. "Can I go with Lane to the library today?"

Lorelai smiled. She was so happy. "Yes. If it is okay with her mom."

"Is it okay with your mom?" Rory asked. "She said it is fine." Rory was completely surprised.

Lorelai gave a thumbs up.

"I can come. I'll see you in thirty minutes. Bye Lane." Rory was so excited. She hung up the phone. "Mom."

"Yes." Lorelai tried to play it cool.

"Did you have something to do with this?" Rory knew she did.

"I don't know. I'm happy that Mrs. Kim changed her mind."

"You're the best." Rory gave her a hug.

"Two hugs in one morning. I must be doing something right." Lorelai laughed.

Ruby sat down at the table. "Can I stay home today, mommy?"

"No sweetie. You have to go with me to the Inn. You like the Inn."

"I don't want to go if Rory and Ryan don't have to go." Ruby crossed her arms.

Lorelai groaned. Of course she couldn't go one day without at least one of her children giving her a hard time. "You have to go, Ruby. There is no one that can watch you."

"I'm not going." Ruby pouted. "I want to stay with Rory."

"You cannot stay with Rory." Lorelai told her. "You have to go with me, and I would appreciate it if my sweet girl would grace me with her presence this morning."

Ruby glared at her mom. "This isn't fair. You love Rory and Ryan more than me."

"Oh Ruby," Lorelai hated when Ruby said things like that. She knew Ruby was just being manipulative. "That is not true."

"You treat me like a baby."

"You are my baby." Lorelai reminded her. "And you are going with me to the Inn."

"No." Ruby continued to cross her arms and be as stubborn as possible.

Lorelai shook her head and gave Ruby her best mom look. Ruby gave her best spoiled stubborn kid look.

"We are leaving in ten minutes, Ruby. You better pack your favorites toys." Lorelai walked out of the kitchen. She was not going to let her six year old get the best of her.

* * *

Rory and Ryan walked into town together. "Dad called." Ryan told his sister.

She stopped walking. "What? How do you know that?"

"I saw it on mom's phone."

"Oh."

"I guess he didn't want to talk to us." Ryan sounded disappointed.

"Maybe mom wasn't home when he called." Rory tried to make the situation better, but she knew that wasn't true. Her dad really had become such a disappointment to her. But she knew Ryan tried to pretend that everything was okay and that their father hadn't abandoned them.

"He could have called back."

They started walking again.

"I wish mom would talk to us about it." Ryan said. "I feel like there is so much more to the story that we don't know."

"I think it was dad's fault." She said, waiting for the backlash.

"Why? Maybe mom did something wrong."

Rory shook her head. "Mom did everything she could to stay married to dad. Dad was never around. He still isn't around."

"Maybe mom told him to stay away."

"Maybe your just team dad because he has always been your favorite."

"He hasn't always been my favorite."

"Oh yeah he has. It's probably because you share the same anatomy."

"Maybe that's why you are team mom."

"No." Rory shook her head. "I'm team mom because she is the one that has always been there for us. She always puts us first, and she never lets us down. You should be team mom too. She deserves to have us all on her team." Rory tried to explain to him.

"I just think Dad has his reasons for not coming around."

"Maybe one day we will learn the truth, but until then we just have to focus on making this work." Rory told him. "That's all we can do."

"I'm not going to screw it up, Rory." Ryan told her. "I know you think I am, but I'm not."

"Let's hope not. Mom needs this. We all do." She looked at him before walking off in the direction of Lane's house. Ryan watched her walk away. He couldn't give up on his dad.

* * *

Lorelai basically had to drag Ruby into the Inn. "Ruby, I have had it. You are not being very nice."

"You aren't being very nice." Ruby argued.

"Okay that is it, Ruby Victoria Hayden." Lorelai was done with her bad attitude. She led her to a chair in the corner of the room. "You are going to sit here until you decide that my sweet girl wants to return to planet earth." Lorelai sat her in the chair.

"That's not fair."

"It is very fair." Lorelai took her bag. "No toys."

"I hate you." Ruby crossed her arms.

Lorelai didn't say anything but her heart broke into a million tiny pieces.

She walked away from her little girl. That was the first time Ruby had ever told her that before. Ryan had said it once when she took away his video games for a week. Rory had never said it.

She felt like the worst mother in the world.

"Don't worry about that." Sookie said as she led Lorelai into the kitchen. "My five year old, Davey, throws tantrums like that from time to time. She doesn't mean it."

After they entered the kitchen, Sookie handed her a cup of coffee. Lorelai gladly took it. "I know, but it all hurts just the same."

"Moving here is an adjustment for all of you. You just have to give it time."

"I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard that saying. I would be a very rich woman."

"Sorry."

"No I'm sorry. I'm crabby. Maybe I get it from my six year old." Lorelai chuckled. "Or maybe she gets it from me."

"I think we should get Davey and Ruby together. My husband Jackson has been begging me for another kid, but I only ever wanted one kid."

"You can have Ruby anytime you want." Lorelai smiled. "I'll even given you a grumpy teenager if you are feeling extra adventurous. They really are the best." She said sarcastically.

"I am not looking forward to those days. If he is anything like me he will be wild and crazy." She held her hands up and made a face.

"I can only imagine." Lorelai continue to drink her coffee. "This is the best coffee."

"You haven't had Luke's coffee yet." Sookie told her. "Nothing else he serves is better than mine, but his coffee is the best."

"Rory says the same thing."

"And just so you know, Luke is single." Sookie thought that she would throw that out there.

"We haven't even been here a week." Lorelai reminded her. "I'm not looking to date anyone. I have to focus all of my time on my children."

"You aren't dead." Sookie said as she waved her spoon in the air. "How long have you been divorced?"

"Almost two years."

Sookie's mouth flew open.

"You don't have to make that face." Lorelai pointed.

"Well have you…you know…"

"No. I haven't had much time for dating."

"Lorelai you are beautiful woman. You should be dating and having fun. You may be a mom but you aren't dead."

"So you've said." Lorelai shook her head.

"I'm just saying."

"I know what you are saying, Sookie. But for now I am okay with being single." Lorelai said the words but knew that wasn't true. She wanted to find someone to spend her life with, but she was scared. She didn't know how to date.

"Sure." Sookie did not believe her for one minute.

"I better go check on Ruby." Lorelai put her cup in the sink. "Maybe she will miraculously be in a better mood." Lorelai was doubtful.

"We are not done with this conversation." Sookie yelled at her.

Lorelai waved at her and exited the kitchen. She walked over to the corner chair but was surprised that her daughter was not sitting where she left her. "Ruby." She called out but didn't get an answer. "Michel." Lorelai walked over to the front desk.

"Yes." Michel said rudely.

"Have you seen Ruby?"

"Not today."

"Are you sure? She was sitting right over there." She pointed to the chair. She was beginning to panic.

"I am sure, Lorelai. If you don't mind, I have business to tend to."

"Whatever, Michel." She was not in the mood for his attitude.

"Lorelai, is something wrong?" Mia asked her.

"I can't find Ruby. I put her in timeout, but she isn't there."

"Don't worry sweetheart. We will find her."

Lorelai was freaking out on the inside and out.

* * *

Jess and Ryan were headed to the Inn to see if they could hangout at the pool before Jess had to help out at the diner. Ryan thought it was funny that he was going to the Inn after making such a big deal about it the day before. He knew his mom would get a kick out of it.

As they were walking, Ryan noticed someone who looked a whole lot like his sister, Ruby.

"Ruby." Ryan called out to her.

"Go away, Ryan." Ruby walked right past him.

"Wait a minute." Ryan pulled her back. "Where do you think you are going?"

"I'm going home. I don't want to be at the Inn. I don't like mom."

"Really?" Ryan smirked.

"Yes. Now let go of me."

"Does mom know where you are?"

"She put me in timeout. I don't like to be put in timeout."

"I think you woke up on the wrong side of the bed." Ryan told her. "You've got to go back to the Inn."

"No I don't."

"She is a handful." Jess noted.

"Yeah. Tell me about it." Ryan picked up his little sister.

"What are you doing? Put me down. Put me down right now." She kicked him.

Ryan didn't care. He just carried her back to the Inn.

* * *

Lorelai was in pure panic mode. Mia was trying to calm her down. They had searched the Inn up and down.

"I don't know where she could have gone. She knows not to go off without me. She knows how I would feel if I didn't know where she was." Lorelai had tears in her eyes.

"Lorelai," Mia pointed to the door. "Look at that."

Ryan was bringing a kicking and screaming, Ruby into the Inn.

"Oh thank God." Lorelai ran over to her kids.

"I found her walking down the road."

Lorelai was furious. "I'm glad you found her." Lorelai stared at her daughter.

"Can we go swimming?" Ryan asked.

Lorelai looked up at the two boys. "You must be Jess." She extended her hand. "I'm Lorelai."

"Nice to meet you." Jess told her.

"You too. You boys can go swimming. But please be respectful to the guest. Got it."

"Got it." Ryan and Jess walked away.

"As for you, young lady, follow me." Lorelai took Ruby's hand and led her into Mia's office. She sat her down in the chair and knelt down to face her.

Ruby was still mad.

"Ruby, I would like to know what you were thinking."

Ruby shrugged.

"Ruby. You scared me to death. You are lucky that Ryan found you. Something really bad could have happened to you." Lorelai didn't want to think about that.

"But it didn't."

"But it could have. I really don't like your attitude. What has gotten into you?"

"I don't want to come to work with you every day." Ruby admitted. "It is not fun. It sucks."

"Language." Lorelai shook her head. Ruby was definitely the child that was going to turn her hair gray way to soon. "You won't have to come to the Inn much longer because school will start soon."

"Not soon enough. It is so boring here."

"I know you think that, and I understand that." Lorelai took a hold of Ruby's hand. "We are new in this town, and I don't know a whole lot of people I don't have anyone that can keep you. You have to come to work with me."

"But I don't want too." Ruby wined.

"Well…Ruby Bear, you are going to learn that sometimes we have to do things that we don't want to do because it is for the best. You coming to the Inn helps me out. I need you to be the sweet girl that I know you to be." Lorelai told her. "We don't have any other options right now."

Ruby looked around the room. "Fine. I'll be good."

Lorelai let out a smile of relief. "And Ruby running off from me is never okay. I don't care how mad you are. You could have been hurt, and you really scared me to death. I don't know what I would do if something happened to you or Rory or Ryan. I am supposed to know where you are at all times."

"I know. I'm sorry."

"And because you ran off from me today, you are not allowed to watch the movie tonight. You have to go to bed early." Lorelai touched Ruby's nose. She hated punishing her kids. It brought her back to all the times she was punished as a kid. She never wanted her kids to feel the way that she did growing up.

"Mommy." Ruby pouted.

"No ma'am, you aren't going to be able to change my mind on this with your cute face." Lorelai pinched her face gently. She really did have the cutest face ever.

"Okay. I'm really sorry."

"I know sweetie. Just please don't let it happen again." Lorelai hugged her little girl. She didn't know what she would do if something ever happened to any of her kids.

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed! Sorry that it is kind of short!**


	9. These People

**There are so many great revival fics out there. I hope people are still reading this one. This is a chapter I added because a reviewer said it would be nice to see her meet all the townies. There is no progression in story in this chapter.**

 **I hope you all enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 9: These People**

Lorelai was in the kitchen making her coffee. The kids were still asleep. She heard a knock on the door. Lorelai put down her coffee cup and went to the door. She opened it up to see Babette standing in front of her. "Hi. Babette."

"Morning, sugar." She walked in carrying what looked like a sleepover bag.

Lorelai looked at her oddly. "Babette, whatcha doing?"

Babette walked into the living room. "I'm here to babysit."

"What?"

"A little birdy told me that you needed a babysitter. I'm here to help."

Lorelai shook her head. "A little birdy?"

Babette nodded. "Oh yeah. I have nothing to do during the day. I would love to hang out with little Ruby. She is a doll baby."

Lorelai's head was spinning. "Ruby." She called out.

Ruby walked out of her hiding space.

"Did you talk to Babette?"

Ruby shrugged.

"Ruby," Lorelai said sternly.

Ruby nodded. "She said she would do it." Ruby smiled.

Lorelai looked at her daughter and then at Babette. "Babette, you do not have to do this. Ruby is perfectly fine going to work with me." Lorelai glared at her little girl.

"Please let her, mommy." Ruby pouted.

"I really don't mind, sugar. Ruby and I will have a lot of fun. I'll take good care of her."

Lorelai thought about it and sighed. "Fine. You can stay with Babette." She walked over to Ruby. "But Ruby…Going behind my back is not the way to get what you want, is that understood?" Although, Lorelai was giving her exactly what she wanted after she went behind her back.

Ruby nodded.

"You better be on your best behavior with Babette." She kissed her forehead.

"I will mommy. I promise." Ruby was excited. "Thanks, Babette."

"Anytime sugar."

Ruby held out her hand for a fist bump.

Babette just looked at her hand.

"Like this," Ruby showed her how to do it.

"Oh…" Babette laughed.

Lorelai smiled. She was going to have her hands full with that one. That was for sure.

* * *

Lorelai finished getting ready and decided to head into town before going to the Inn. She wanted to have a cup of Luke's coffee. Rory kept talking about how good it was. Lorelai wanted to give it a try.

"Lorelai."

She heard her name and turned around trying to find the person who said it.

"Over here." A woman standing inside the dance school said. She waved her over.

"Hi." Lorelai didn't know the woman and wasn't sure how the woman knew her.

"I'm Ms. Patty." She told Lorelai. "I'm the dance instructor in town."

"Nice to meet you."

"I've heard a lot about you."

Lorelai was surprised. "Really? How?"

"It's a small town sweetheart." Ms. Patty informed her. "And Babette is one my dearest and nearest friends."

Lorelai nodded. She could totally see that. "Well we love Babette."

"And you should know this town is small. We know everything here."

"That's good to know."

"I heard you have three kids."

"I do. Ryan, Rory, and Ruby."

"Ooh wee that is a tongue twister."

"I like that alliteration." Lorelai laughed.

"I bet the girls would love to tryout some dance lessons. First class is on the house."

"I will ask them."

"Oh you should. And if you ever need help finding a man." Ms. Patty smiled. "I can help you out in that department."

"Okay." Lorelai was surprised. She didn't want any help in the dating department. "Thanks, Ms. Patty. I'll let you know."

"Oh good dear. I can't wait. So happy to have you in town."

Lorelai walked off. She wanted to make it to the diner for that cup of coffee. She was walking and could feel someone behind her. She didn't turn around. She just kept walking.

"Excuse me," the man finally made his way in front of her. "You are Lorelai Gilmore."

Lorelai stopped. "Yes that's what it says on my underwear." The man gave her an odd look. "Yes I am." She was surprised that everyone seemed to know her. It really was a small town.

"Well I wanted to officially introduce myself. I'm Taylor Doose. I'm the town selectman." He extended his hand.

Lorelai shook his hand and smiled as she realized who he was. "Oh yes. You are Taylor. I wanted to apologize. My son Ryan got caught in your yard the other day. I'm really sorry about that. He didn't know what he was doing." Lorelai fibbed a little. She was sure that Ryan knew what he was doing.

"Oh I'm sure he did." Taylor said. "He was with Jess, and Jess is known as the town hooligan."

Lorelai shook her head. "I don't think Jess is a hooligan."

"Oh he is. And you better be careful letting your son hang out with him. He will only get into more trouble. I know you don't want that."

"No. I don't want that." Lorelai was already over Taylor Doose. Everyone was right about him. He was a real pill. "I can promise you that it won't happen again."

"Well if it does I will have to call the police again. I'm sorry to do it, but it is the way that it has to be." Taylor told her.

Lorelai tried to walk away.

"And another thing Lorelai."

"What's that, Taylor?"

"This is a very small town, and we take great pride in making sure that it is taken care of."

Lorelai nodded.

"I imagine that since you moved here you feel the same way. I expect we will see you at town meetings, fund raisers, events, and festivals. That's the only way you can become a true part of this town."

"I will try my best Taylor."

"You will need to do more than try, Lorelai."

"Nice to meet you Taylor." She made a break for it. She could hear him mumbling something as she walked away. He was extremely annoying, and she had only been around him under five minutes. She couldn't imagine having to be around him much longer.

She finally made it into the diner. "Hi Luke." She hoped he meant what he said about her being allowed in the diner.

"Hey Lorelai. What can I get you?"

"Coffee. Coffee. Coffee. The biggest cup of coffee you can find. I have had such a morning. Everyone in this town knows who I am, and I don't even know how that's possible."

"It's a small town." He said nonchalantly.

"That's what everyone says."

He poured her a cup of coffee. "It's true."

"Thank you." Lorelai took a sip of her coffee. "Oh my God. This is amazing coffee."

Luke smiled, remembering his conversation with Rory.

"I mean really. What do you do to this coffee?"

"I don't do anything special." He told her.

"Well I want to marry this cup of coffee."

Luke laughed.

"Why are you laughing?"

"Rory said that you would feel that way."

Lorelai smiled, "She knows me so well." She took another sip of her coffee.

Someone tapped her on the shoulder. She turned around. "Are you Lorelai Gilmore?"

"Yes." Here we go again, she thought to herself.

"I'm Kirk." The strange character said. "I'm in charge of the town welcome wagon."

"Welcome wagon?" She asked confused. She looked down to see a little red wagon. It was filled with goodies.

"Yes. This is your welcome wagon. I know you have children so there are some toys and chocolate in there."

"They aren't getting the chocolate." She giggled. "Thank you so much, Kirk. This is really nice."

"Well it is my job."

"It is a very nice job."

"It's one of my many jobs. I'm a very talented man. It's even engraved on my underwear. Do you want to see?"

"No." Lorelai said quickly. "I trust you."

"If you ever need anything," he pulled several cards out of his pocket. "You can find me at any of those numbers. I should go now."

"Thank you, Kirk." Lorelai looked at the cards he handed her. Kirk had walked away leaving the wagon. "He works at the funeral home?" She asked, looking at the cards.

Luke refilled her coffee cup even though it wasn't empty. "He is a little weird." Luke shrugged. He didn't know what else to tell her.

"I don't think I realized what I was getting myself into."

"Before you know it you will become a real townie."

"You don't seem like a townie." She noted as she took another sip of coffee.

He shook his head. "Nope. I am immune to that type of stuff. But I don't think you are immune. You seem too nice."

"You didn't think I was nice the first time we met."

"I changed my mind."

"Good." Lorelai looked at her watch. "I should go. Oh crap. What am I going to do with this wagon?"

"You can keep it here. I'm sure one of your kids will be by today. I'll give it to whoever stops by first." He walked around the counter. "I'll take it in the back."

"Thanks, Luke. You're the best." Lorelai took one final sip of her drink and left the diner. 'Townie.' She thought to herself. Even though the people were a little weird, she was okay with that. She was excited to see where the town and her life was going to take her.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	10. We Love Credit Cards

**A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 10: We Love Credit Cards**

Lorelai, Ryan, Rory, and Ruby were at the diner enjoying breakfast and lots of coffee. They had now been in Stars Hollow for about three weeks. It was still very new for them, but they were beginning to find their new routine.

"Rory, I think you would have more fun if you stayed and hung out with us today." Lorelai took a bite of her bacon. "We have a super fun filled day planned."

Ryan made a face.

"Mom, you already said that I could go to Hartford." Rory reminded her.

"I know that, but I think I've changed my mind." Lorelai admitted. "I don't want you getting on the bus and going that far without me."

"Mom, you can't change your mind." Rory told her. "I promise I'll be careful. I'll call you when I get to Paris' house, and I'll call you when I'm getting back on the bus. They are expecting me. Please. You have to let me go."

"Okay," Lorelai said reluctantly. "You cannot forget to call me."

"I won't."

"I know you will have a lot of fun but not too much fun."

"Mom." Ryan complained. "Just let her go."

Lorelai gave him a look.

"We will buy you something on our shopping adventure." She told Rory.

"Awesome. You are the best."

"Mom," Ryan looked at her. "Do I have to go?"

"Yes. We have had this planned all week." Lorelai told him. "You are going with us."

"But mom." Ryan sighed. "I don't want to go shopping."

"You need new pants."

"You can get them without me."

"No I can't. This is not up for discussion."

"More coffee?" Luke asked as he approached the table.

"Is that even a question?"

"Sorry. Don't know what I was thinking." Luke poured her another cup. "What are you sulking about?" Luke asked Ryan. He had gotten to know him over the past few weeks. Luke really liked that Jess had a new friend.

"He doesn't want to go shopping with me." Lorelai answered for Ryan. "But he doesn't have a choice."

"Oh you are going shopping today?"

"Yes." Lorelai told him.

"Can Jess go with you?" Luke asked.

Lorelai was surprised.

"I wouldn't ask, but he needs a few things for school. It starts in two weeks, and I don't know when I'm going to have time to take him. You don't have to take him. I'm sorry I asked. You have enough kids to take care of."

"Luke. He can come." Lorelai responded. She knew Ryan would like having his friend with him. She could tell Ryan was happy by the look on his face.

"Really?" Luke was surprised. "I'm going to give you my card." He took out his wallet. "Don't let him spend too much."

"I can promise that Jess won't spend too much, but I can't promise you that Ruby and I won't go on a shopping spree." She laughed.

Luke was reluctant to give her his card.

She held out her hand.

He handed her the car but kept a grip on it until Lorelai pried it out of his hands. "We love credit cards."

Ruby, Lorelai, and Rory all chuckled. Ryan joined in.

"I'll go get Jess." Luke walked away.

"Mom, I've got to go." Rory told her.

"Okay." Lorelai was nervous about letting her go back to Hartford. She stood up. "Here is some money." She handed it to her. "I love you."

"Mom, she isn't going off to war."

Lorelai glared at him. She hugged Rory. "Be careful."

"You have nothing to worry about, mom. Love you." Rory said as she walked out of the diner.

Lorelai sat back down. "Alright you two…You guys are going to have to keep me company today."

"Yay."

"Don't be sarcastic. I will make you try on every single pair of pants I see, Mister. Even old man pants. I may even buy you a pair of old man pants and old man sweater, and make you wear it on your first day."

"Okay. Okay. I get it." Ryan held his hand up hoping that she would stop.

"I'm excited to spend the day with you, mommy."

"Suck up." Ryan remarked.

"Don't say suck." Ruby told him.

"You don't say suck." Ryan argued back.

"Hey no arguing and no saying suck." Lorelai broke up the disagreement. She was used to it. Her kids were always arguing about something.

* * *

Rory was with her friends Paris and Louise at Paris's house. "I can't believe your mom did this to me." Paris told Rory in her dramatic Paris way.

"My mom didn't do anything to you, Paris." Rory told her. "We just moved."

"Yes. Rory. I know that. I need you to be at school with me. We've been in the same class since we were seven. That's a long time. You challenge me. You make me better."

"We can meet back up at Chilton next year."

Paris rolled her eyes. "There is no way that you'll get into Chilton after you have spent a year at public school."

"Of course I'll get into Chilton." Rory had no doubt in her mind. "I have the best grades in our class."

"I would beg to differ." Paris sat down on the bed next to Louise. "We were tied this year, and I'll be ahead of you once you leave for public school."

Rory felt nervous. She didn't want to believe Paris. She had always dreamed of going to Chilton.

"If you don't go to Chilton, you will never get into Harvard."

Rory frowned. Harvard was also part of her dream. She already had Harvard sweatshirts, notebooks, and pajamas.

"You don't know that." Louise intervened. "Stop giving her such a hard time. We don't have much time before she has to go back home, and I am tired of talking about school." Louise complained.

"I'm with Louise." Rory pumped her fist in support.

Paris rolled her eyes. "Fine. I'll drop it. But if you would like me to write a note to your mother about the severity of her actions."

"I think I'll be okay." Rory smiled. Paris had always driven her crazy, but she really did miss her.

"Can we talk about my lipstick?" Louise poked out her lips, and Rory handed her another color.

"I think this one is better."

"I think both of them make you look like a two dollar whore." Paris grabbed one of the magazines off of the bed and started to read.

Louise and Rory shared looks and just laughed at their friend. Paris was a special kind of person.

* * *

Lorelai, Jess, and Ruby were sitting outside of a dressing room. Ruby had fallen asleep in the chair. They were surrounded by bags. Lorelai always enjoyed back to school shopping, and this year was even more fun because the kids did not have to wear school uniforms. She wished Rory was there with them, but she would take her one day after work. Rory was pretty easy to shop for, and Lorelai actually enjoyed torturing Ryan. It was fun.

Jess looked at Lorelai. "I can't believe you've made him try on so many pair of pants." He laughed.

Lorelai smiled. "Ryan knows the consequences of mocking me. That's my favorite part of being a mom."

"I've never even seen that many pair of pants. How many pair are you going to buy him?"

"Maybe two." Lorelai laughed.

Jess shook his head. "Wow. I think you might be evil." He joked.

"Thank you. I appreciate the recognition." They both laughed and remained silent for a moment.

"I'm sorry." Jess finally blurted out.

"For what?" Lorelai looked at him. She wasn't sure what he was talking about.

"I'm sorry for getting Ryan in trouble. My Uncle Luke told me you were upset about it. So I wanted you to know that I'm sorry."

"Thank you for apologizing Jess, but I know that Ryan was just as responsible as you. As far as I know, Ryan's voice was working when you asked him if he wanted to trespass with you. He could have said no and avoided being brought home by a police officer."

"Officer Wright." Jess smiled. "He is a very nice guy."

Lorelai nodded. "Yes. But I never want to see him on my doorstep ever again."

"I know. It won't happen again."

"Good."

"You are a lot like my uncle." Jess told her.

"How so?" Lorelai wondered how she and Luke could be a like.

"You are both really understanding." He admitted. "Uncle Luke acts all tough and hard, but he is a big softy. He drives me crazy sometimes, but he is the first person in my life that has actually stood up for me. He is the first person that has ever cared about me." Jess said sadly. He really wished that his mom cared about him, but he was happy with his uncle.

Lorelai was about to say something, but Ryan walked out of the dressing room wearing a pair of dark black pants. "Mooom," he drug out her name. "Are you done torturing me? I'm tired of trying on pants."

"Did you try them all on?" She asked.

"Yes."

"Are you lying to me?"

He shook his head.

"What about the bright red pair?"

"Mom," he pouted. "Please. Don't make me."

Jess laughed.

Lorelai stood up and hugged her son. "You're done. Let's get some ice cream."

Ryan smiled. "Thank God."

Jess smiled at Lorelai. She was a pretty cool mom.

* * *

"Ms. Rory," Paris's maid walked into the room. "Someone is here to see you."

"What? Me?" Rory was confused. She looked at Paris. "I bet my mom decided to come pick me up." She walked out of the room and downstairs. She was shocked. "Grandma."

"Hello, Rory." Emily Gilmore greeted her.

Rory stood in shock.

"Aren't you going to give me a hug?"

Rory hugged her. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to pick you up." Emily motioned for her to come with her.

"I'm supposed to take the bus back home. My mom is expecting me."

"Your mother can come to my house to pick you up. Come on sweetie. We have so much to catch up on." Emily tried to lead Rory out of the house.

"I need to get my things." Rory was torn. She knew her mom would be furious.

"Don't worry about your mother, Rory. It is perfectly fine for you to spend time with your grandmother." Emily insisted.

"Okay." Rory sighed. She was really nervous that she was going to make her mom mad.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	11. Not a Kidnapping

**I can't thank you all enough for all the reviews, follows, and faves. Each one makes me so happy.**

 **I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 11: Not a Kidnapping**

Lorelai, Ryan, Ruby, and Jess were standing at the bus stop waiting on Rory to get home. "I hope Rory likes the outfits I got for her."

"I feel like you bought them for yourself." Ryan told her.

"I didn't buy them for myself. That's ridiculous. Everyone knows Rory is bigger than me." Lorelai joked.

Ryan and Ruby both stared at their mother. She stuck out her tongue at the two of them. Jess chuckled. He thought she was pretty funny, and he usually hated most people.

Lorelai looked at her watch. "I can't believe she didn't call me. Rory is always so good at letting me know where she is."

"Maybe she's on the run." Ryan joked.

Lorelai narrowed her eyes at him. "That's not a funny joke." She popped him on the arm.

"Ow."

"You deserved it." Ruby told him.

Ryan sighed. "You're always on mom's side."

"She gave birth to me." Ruby smiled and high fived Lorelai.

"She is such a good student." Lorelai kissed her forehead. "Oh the bus."

The bus arrived. Passengers exited. Lorelai was taken aback when Rory did not get off of the bus. The bus drove away. "Wait a minute." Lorelai yelled but the bus was gone. "Where is Rory?" Lorelai asked but knew they didn't know the answer. "I'm going to call Paris's house. Excuse me." Lorelai walked away to privately call. The girls must have lost track of time.

Jess gave Ryan a look. "It looks like your sister is going to be in a big trouble."

"Not my sister." Ryan shook his head. "She never gets in trouble."

"It's true. She's an angel." Ruby informed him. "Even more than me."

"Well she wasn't on the bus. That seems like trouble to me."

Ryan shook his head again. "No. Something has happened. If Rory said that she was going to be on the bus, then Rory would have been on the bus." Ryan was a little worried about his sister. She really was perfect. It drove him crazy, but he never wanted anything to happen to her.

Lorelai walked back over to the kids. She was furious, but she was trying her best to hide it from Ryan and Ruby.

"Mom, what's wrong?"

"I have got to go to Hartford to take care of something. Let's go see if you can chill at Luke's until I get back."

"What happened?" Ryan asked again.

"I'll tell you later."

"I can take Ruby home and watch her."

"No." Lorelai didn't mean to sound so harsh. "I want you to stay with an adult."

"Mom." Ryan began to complain.

"This is not a good time to argue with me, okay." Lorelai told him. "Just do what I ask you to do. Alright?"

Ryan decided to comply, and they all walked into the diner.

"Hey how did it go?" Luke asked as he saw the crew walk in.

"You guys go sit over there." She told Ryan and Ruby. Jess followed the other two. "Luke, can I talk to you for a second."

"Oh no." Luke followed her to the back. "What did Jess do? I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked you to take him. I hope we can still be friends. I hope you continue to let him be friends with Ryan. It is good for him to have a friend. I really am sorry. I'll make him apologize. What did he do?"

Lorelai couldn't get a word in. "I didn't realize someone could ramble as much as me." She told him. "This has nothing to do with Jess. I need to ask you for a favor."

"Anything."

"Can you watch the kids? I've got to go to Hartford to get my daughter. My mother has taken her."

"What?"

Lorelai shook her head. "I just need to go pick her up, and I don't want to leave my other kids alone. I have no idea what my parents are up to, and I don't want to take any chances."

"Of course they can stay."

"Please don't say anything to the kids. I don't want them to know."

"I won't say a word."

"Thanks, Luke." Lorelai started to walk away. "And Jess was great today. He is a good kid."

Luke smiled. That wasn't a phrase he heard about Jess all that much. It sounded nice.

Lorelai walked over to where her kids were sitting. "I'll be back. You two be good for Luke." She kissed both of their foreheads Ryan pulled away of course.

He knew something was up, and he hated when his mom kept things from him.

* * *

Rory was sitting with her grandmother drinking tea. She was extremely nervous. She knew that her mom was not going to be happy, and she anxiously waited for her to fly through the door and throw a fit.

"Rory," Emily tried to wave her out of her thoughts. "You've barely said two words."

"I'm just tired, grandma." Rory said with a shaky voice.

"Rory. You know you can talk to me. You can tell me anything."

Rory shook her head. "I'm fine."

"You do not have to be afraid to be in my house. I am your grandmother. You have been here a thousand times." Emily took a sip of her tea. "Tell me about the town your mother has whisked you off to?"

"Not much to tell." Rory didn't want to talk about it. She knew her mom wouldn't want her to. And she was too nervous to talk about anything. Her heart was pounding faster than she thought was possible. Maybe she was having a heart attack.

"Mom."

They both heard Lorelai's voice.

"I guess she forgot how to ring the doorbell." Emily said as she sat her tea down and stood up.

"Rory."

"Mom." She whispered.

"What the hell were you thinking?" She yelled at her mother as she made her way into the room. She immediately walked over to Rory and gave her a hug. "I'm glad you are okay."

"Well why wouldn't she be okay, Lorelai? I'm her grandmother. I would never hurt her."

Lorelai could not control her anger. She had tried to calm herself on the drive to Hartford, but as soon as she entered the house and saw her mother, all of her anger came flooding back to her. "I can't believe you took my daughter."

"I did not take your daughter." Emily was disgusted with the insinuation. "I am her grandmother. I have a right to see her."

"You need to ask my permission." Lorelai yelled. She saw how upset Rory was. "Rory, baby, you can go wait for me in the car." She didn't want her daughter to see the blood bath that was about to take place.

"Wait." Emily walked over to Rory. "You don't have to go."

"Yes she does." Lorelai said adamantly. "Tell her goodbye, Rory."

"Bye, Grandma." Rory gave her a hug and walked out of the room.

Emily was furious "You are being ridiculous as usual."

"Oh please mom," Lorelai scoffed. "You are the one that is being ridiculous."

"Where are the other children? I would like to see them."

"They aren't here."

"You left your children alone. You know Ryan is a little bit of a wild child, like you were at that age. And poor Ruby is too young to be by herself." Emily rattled off.

"Someone is watching them, but I don't have to explain anything to you. You are the one that has some explaining to do." Lorelai glared at her mother. She still was amazed at the stunt she had pulled.

"That's absurd. I have not done anything wrong." Emily was outraged at her only daughter.

"Oh my God." Lorelai yelled. "You will never change."

"You are the one that took my grandchildren away from me. You are the one that is selling your house and moving to some hillbilly town. And you didn't even have the common decency to tell your parents." Emily yelled back at her.

"I knew you would find out. And you did." Lorelai threw her arms up in the air to add to the dramatics.

"You didn't tell me because you knew I wouldn't let you go."

Lorelai's eyes narrowed. "I am 30 years old. I do not have to have your permission or anyone else's permission to do what is best for my children. Your days of controlling my life are officially over. I did what you wanted. I got married. I played the stepford wife. It didn't work out. Now I get to do things my way. Do you understand that?" Lorelai yelled. If you want to see Rory, Ryan, and Ruby you need to call and clear it with me first. If you want to buy them anything, you've got to call me and ask my permission. If you can't abide by those rules then you can't see me or my children." Lorelai had enough. She was done playing her mother's game.

"You can't do that." Emily said calmly.

"I can do whatever the hell I want." Lorelai told her proudly. "For the first time in my life, I'm in charge of things." Lorelai started to walk away.

"Lorelai, Lorelai do not walk away from me. I am not done here." Emily followed her.

Lorelai turned back to her mother. "You might not be, but I am, mother."

"You can run away from us, from this lifestyle, but you will be back. You are a Gilmore." Emily told her.

"Yes, that will always be true, but I have never fit into this lifestyle, and I never will. Goodbye." Lorelai walked out of the house, slamming the door behind her.

Emily's face changed from one of anger to one of disappointment and sadness. She couldn't believe this was happening to her. What would everyone think of their family now?

* * *

Rory and Lorelai are sitting in the car in silence in front of Luke's Diner.

Rory looked at her mother and sighed. "I am so sorry, mom. I should not have gone with grandma. I knew better. I'm so, so sorry." Rory felt so guilty.

"Oh hon, no. You can't blame yourself for what happened. This is all on my mother." Lorelai pats Rory's leg. "But you were right. I should have at least left them a note. They shouldn't have found out from anyone but us. That was me being childish." Lorelai had anticipated that her mother would go crazy once she found out, but she never thought she would involve Rory.

"Grandma was not going to be happy about this no matter how she found out." Rory reassured her mother.

"You can see your grandma whenever you want."

Rory shook her head. "I think that I need a break from her and from Hartford. I want to try and make Stars Hollow work."

Lorelai smiled. "Me too, kid. Me too." Lorelai opened her car door. "I've got to go get your brother and sister. You want to come in?"

"Can I go see Lane?"

"Sure but don't be too long."

"I won't." Rory hopped out of the car and ran off to Lane's.

Lorelai took a deep breath before getting out of the car and walking into the diner.

The Diner was empty. Luke walked out of the back. "Hey. How did it go?" He asked.

Lorelai could feel the tears filling her eyes. "Where are the kids?" She choked out.

"Upstairs." Luke walked closer to her. "Where's Rory? Is she okay?"

Lorelai nodded. "She's fine. She went to see Lane."

"Lorelai, are you okay?"

Lorelai shook her head and began to cry. Luke gave her a hug, and she rested her head on his shoulder. Luke always seemed to be comforting her. "You want some coffee?" He thought it might help her feel better.

She nodded her head and wiped away her tears.

"It's going to be okay." He told her as he walked over to the coffee pot and poured her a cup. "I promise."

Lorelai nodded. She knew he was right. She also knew that she was lucky to have a friend like him.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought of the Emily and Lorelai confrontation. It was nothing like the confrontation in the revival. That scene makes me cry every time I watch it.**


	12. Hello Christopher

**Thanks again for all the support! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **P.S. I hope you all get a chance to read Lauren Graham's new book (hey Lauren). If you love her as much as I do, then you will really love the book. She is the best!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 12: Hello Christopher**

Lorelai, Rory, and Ryan were at Stars Hollow High for registration day. Lorelai was signing the paperwork. Rory and Ryan were standing behind her. She turned around and smiled as she held up their papers. "Here you go. Here you go." She handed them their class schedules. They took it, but weren't all that amused. "What is up with the two of you?" She asked. They both shrugged. "I thought you two would be excited. I can't believe my babies are starting high school. I remember your first day of kindergarten." She smiled as she remembered. "Probably because I watched you through the window all day until the security officer asked me to leave. He said I was scaring the other children. But that didn't matter because you two had a great day."

The kids still didn't look amused.

"Can we go?" Rory asked with an eye roll.

Lorelai was surprised by her attitude. "Okay." She points to Ryan. "His attitude I get. He has had an attitude the moment he was born. But you." She turned to Rory. "You love school. Registering is usually your favorite part. Remember last year…You told me registration was an hour earlier than it was so that we could be the first family in line."

"Yeah that was so dumb." Ryan said.

Lorelai gave him a look. "Where is my school nerd? I've really grown to love her."

Rory shrugged.

"Rory," Lorelai hated when her kids weren't acting like their normal selves.

"Nothing is wrong. Can we just drop it?" Rory said a lot harsher than she meant to.

Lorelai picked up on it. "Alright. I can't take it. Let's go talk."

"What about me?"

"Sit there." She pointed. "We will be right back." She took Rory's hand and led her to the corner of the room. "What's wrong, kid?"

Rory sighed and shook her head.

"Do not say nothing." Lorelai stopped her. "You are not the type of person that has an attitude for no reason. I know something is up with you."

"New town new Rory." Rory said sarcastically.

Lorelai raised her eyebrow. "Over my dead body." She said sternly. "If anything, this town should make you happier. It's like Disney World. The happiest place on earth." Lorelai poked her. "You've got to tell me what is bothering you because I'm not going to stop asking until you do."

Rory crossed her arms.

"What's wrong? What's wrong? What's wrong?" Lorelai repeated over and over again. "You know me. I can go on for days, weeks, years if I have to."

Rory sighed. "Mom."

"Rory, you've got to talk to me. You know, I have always thought that it was really nerdy that you loved school so much, but I miss that Rory. I love that Rory. She is a bucket of laughs. I want you to count your highlighters and label your notebooks. I want you to frame your schedule and talk about your classes for hours." Lorelai rubbed Rory's arms. "You've got to tell me what is bothering you. We can't fix it if we don't talk about it. And you know how much I love to talk about things. I can talk for days."

"I'm scared." Rory blurted out.

"Scared?" Lorelai was surprised. "Sweetie, why?"

"I've been in school with the same people most of my life. They all knew that I love books and reading and that I'm crazy about my pencils and highlighters." Rory started pacing. "Paris and I have a rivalry, and it is a good rivalry. Rivalries can be good. She makes me study harder, and I'm pretty sure she is why I am so smart."

"No, Rory. Don't do that. Don't take the credit away from yourself. You are smart because you work hard and because that is who you are." Lorelai hoped to encourage her. She had always been so proud of Rory. "You will work hard with or without Paris because that's just you."

"What if these kids don't like me?" Rory said in a low tone.

Lorelai was taken aback. "Hon, you've never worried about that before."

"I care about it now." Rory admitted. "I've never cared about it before because at least I had a few friends, even Paris. But now it is different. This is high school. High school can make or break you."

"Rory Gilmore, you are going to do great things. I know that, and you have to know that too."

Rory sighed. "I don't know."

"Well first of all you have Lane and you have Ryan."

Rory made a face.

"Well you have Lane." Lorelai told her.

"And what about Chilton?" Rory asked.

"What about Chilton? You will start next year." She didn't see the problem.

"I know that's always been the plan, but Paris doesn't think that I will get in if I don't go to a private school this year."

"When did Paris grow up to be an admissions counselor?" She asked sarcastically. Rory shook her head. "Paris doesn't know as much as she thinks that she does. She is trying to give you a hard time because she is going to miss you this year. Like you said, the two of you have a rivalry. You work well together. Paris doesn't like change. That's the end of that. I don't want you to worry about Chilton. You are the smartest kid I know, and you will not have a problem getting into that school." Lorelai realized in the moment that she should have talked to the kids more before packing them up and moving to Stars Hollow. Although, it wouldn't have changed her mind.

"Rory, if you want, I can send you to school in Hartford. It will be hard, but we will manage. We are planning on doing it next year so that you can go to Chilton. We will make it work."

Rory knew that it would be way too hard for her to go to school in Hartford this year. "It's okay."

"Rory." Lorelai was worried.

"I'll be fine. I think I let Paris get into my head."

"You know you can't do that. There is not enough room up there for the two of you." Lorelai laughed. "Rory, I just want you to be happy. You, Ryan, and Ruby are my main concern. I should have talked to you about moving here."

"I like Stars Hollow." Rory told her. "I'm just a little nervous."

"You shouldn't be nervous." Lorelai hugged her. "You are going to do great things at Stars Hollow High." Lorelai smiled. "I still can't believe my little kids are in high school. That makes me feel really old."

"Mom, you're only thirty."

"Yeah I know. So old!" She laughed again. "Maybe we should all stop aging."

"Not possible."

"It's definitely possible. We just need to find a spring, drink the water, and live forever."

"You're talking about that movie we watched last year?"

Lorelai nodded. "It was based off a true story."

"Mom," Rory laughed at her. "Thanks for making me feel better."

"That's what I'm here for, hon." She stroked Rory's hair. "I'll always be here to talk you off the ledge and remind you what an amazing kid you are. I am so proud of you."

"Are you guys done yet?" Ryan walked over. "I'm ready to go."

"Come here you," Lorelai gave him a big hug. Ryan pushed her away playfully. "I just want to show all your potential friends how much your mommy loves you." She joked with him.

Ryan rolled his eyes.

"Are you two going with me to Sookie's? I've got to pick up your sister."

"Rory."

They turned around to see Lane. "Hey Lane." Rory said.

"Hi Lane." Lorelai waved at her.

"Can I hang out with Lane?" Rory asked.

"Sure, but be home for dinner."

"I will."

"Bye, Ms. Gilmore." Lane said as she and Rory walked away.

Lorelai looked at Ryan. "Are you hanging out with Jess today?"

He shook his head. "No. He is here with Luke, and then he has to work at the diner."

"So you're going with me to Sookie's?"

"Do I have to?" He frowned.

"If you want, you can go home. Maybe we can watch a movie this afternoon."

"Can I pick the movie?"

"Only if you pick a good movie."

"I always pick good movies."

"No fighting. No blood. No wizards."

"Mom. That cuts out everything that is good."

"Depends on whose perspective you're looking at and fortunately for me, we always look at things from my perspective." She points to herself.

"I'll pick a good one."

"See you later sweetie pie."

Ryan shook his head. She was so embarrassing.

Lorelai laughed. She loved giving him a hard time. It was just too easy.

* * *

Luke and Jess had just finished going through the line. Luke stopped Jess. "Alright. Here is the deal."

"What are you talking about?"

"You have got to do better this year. I don't want you to bring home anything less than a B. You are a smart kid, and your grades did not reflect that last year."

"Uncle Luke," Jess grimaced.

"Uh huh. That's not going to cut it this year. You have got to get A's and B's are we are going to reevaluate your freedom."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously," Luke told him. "And I don't want to be called into school because you have caused trouble either. You are better than that."

"A lot of those times you were called in were not my fault." Jess defended himself.

"Most of the time it was." Luke tapped him on the shoulder. "This is going to be a good year. I've got to get back to the diner. I want you there in thirty minutes."

"Okay."

Luke turned to walk away but then turned back to him. "Hey Jess, I care about you, and I want you to grow to your full potential. I know you can do it."

"You sound like a bad Hallmark card."

"Thank you!" He laughed as he walked away.

"Hey," Lorelai said as they ran into each other.

"Sorry." He smiled.

"I think you did that on purpose."

"Oh no. No. I didn't see you." Luke seemed nervous.

Lorelai shrugged it off. "How did it go?"

"Who knows? I've laid down the law with him, but I never know if it is going to stick."

They walked out of the building and down the streets of Stars Hollow together.

"I feel the same way with Ryan, but surprisingly Rory was the one giving me trouble today."

"Rory?" Luke was surprised. "She always seems so laid back."

"I know. She may look like me, but my ways are lost on her." Lorelai laughed. "She absolutely loves school. But this year is different. She's scared. I'm not used to seeing her like that. But I'm sure once she starts school she will be fine."

"What about Ryan?"

"Ryan is Ryan. He so much like me, it is a little scary. He tried to convince me that he only needed to take gym, music, and art.

Luke laughed. "Now that sounds like Jess."

"Boys are the toughest."

"I'm just glad that Jess has Ryan this year. Maybe they will help each other out."

"Or help each other cause trouble." Lorelai suggested.

Luke knew it was probably true, but he was still happy that they were friends.

They made it to the diner before Lorelai realized she should have walked the other direction. "I've got to pick up my kid."

"Yeah and I have got to get to work."

"Okay. Well. See you later."

"Yeah." Luke nodded and walked into the diner.

Lorelai smiled at him. She couldn't believe she had followed Luke all the way to diner and had forgotten where she needed to be. Surprisingly, she found Luke very intriguing. He was a nice guy. She wasn't used to having a nice guy in her life.

* * *

Ryan ran into the house. He was happy to be home alone. He didn't have that luxury very often. Being surrounded by a bunch of girls was not the easiest thing in the world.

He bumped into the desk in the living room, knocking off a piece of paper. He picked it up and read the words Christopher. It was his dad's number. Ryan thought for a moment and in the end decided to call his dad. He missed him.

He dialed the number. It rang three times before Ryan heard his father's voice. "Hello."

"Dad." Ryan said softly.

"Ryan." Christopher sounded surprised. "How did you get this number?"

Ryan was confused by his dad's reaction. "I found it in mom's desk."

"Does she know that you are calling me?" Christopher's voice sounded tense and harsh.

"No. She isn't at home." Ryan answered him. "I miss you dad. I think you should come to Stars Hollow. I think you would like it."

"I don't think your mother would like that." Christopher told him.

Ryan's face crinkled. "Why not? I think she would be okay with it."

"Ryan, I'm sorry but your mom doesn't want me around." Christopher told him. "She thinks it would be best if I gave you all some space. She will probably be upset that you called me." He lied.

Ryan tried to hold back his tears. He was furious with his mother. Why would she do that to him?

"Listen, son, just give your mom sometime. I'm sure she will come around."

"Yeah."

"I should probably go, Ryan. I'll talk to you soon."

"Bye dad." Ryan hung up the phone and threw it across the room. Luckily it landed on the couch and didn't break.

* * *

Later that night the family was sitting down for dinner. Rory and Ruby had been occupying all the conversation, and Ryan was brooding, more than normal. He had stayed in his room most of the afternoon and didn't watch a movie with them.

Rory told her mom that she spoke with Lane and that Lane promised to be by her side every step of the way. Lorelai was happy that Rory was feeling better about school.

Ruby told them about Davey and how much fun he was. She wanted to play with him every single day.

Lorelai looked over at Ryan, who was way too quiet. "How was your day?"

Ryan didn't respond.

"Hey, Ryan, earth to Ryan." She waved her hands in front of him. "Are you in there?"

Ryan rolled his eyes. He felt like he was about to explode.

"What's going on with you?"

"Nothing." He said coldly.

"Don't give me that. I can tell something is bothering you."

"Yeah you're kind of crabby." Ruby chimed in.

Ryan glared at her. "Back off, Ruby."

"Hey." Lorelai raised her voice slightly. "Don't talk to her like that."

"Don't tell me what to do." Ryan spat back.

Lorelai was shocked. Ryan tended to have a bad attitude, but he rarely spoke to her like that. "Excuse me."

"What's wrong, Ryan?" Rory asked.

"You stay out of it too." Ryan yelled at her. "You are the perfect little daughter who is always on her side." He pointed at his mom.

"Alright, Ryan. Living room now." She stood up. Ryan didn't move. "Now."

Ryan rolled his eyes and followed her into the living room.

"Somebody is in big trouble." Ruby whispered to Rory.

Rory nodded. She had a look of worry on her face.

"What is going on with you?"

Ryan stood by the stairs. He didn't say anything.

"Ryan?" Lorelai was becoming very frustrated with her son.

"You." Ryan said.

"What?" Lorelai was confused. As far as she knew, she hadn't done anything that would upset him.

"Why do you hate dad so much?" He asked.

"I don't hate your father." Lorelai told him. It was the truth. He drove her crazy, and she wasn't happy with the way he had behaved, but she could never hate the father of her children.

"You do hate him." He stood up. "He is our dad. And you had no right to tell him to stay away from us."

Lorelai shook her head. She was even more confused than before. "What are you talking about? Where is all of this coming from?"

"I need my dad."

"I know that."

"You obviously don't care. You only care about Ruby and Rory."

"Ryan that is not true." Lorelai argued with him.

"Yes it is. You're the reason dad left. You're the reason he doesn't come around. And you're the reason he barely wanted to talk to me today." Ryan yelled.

"Ryan, honey, you have got to tell me where all of this is coming from."

"Dad told me that you told him to stay away from us for a while. Why would you do that to us?"

Lorelai was shocked. "I never told your father to stay away. I have always encouraged him to have a relationship with the three of you." She sighed angrily. "I cannot believe he told you that."

"I know it is the truth. Dad wouldn't lie to me."

"Oh hon." Lorelai walked closer to Ryan, but he pulled away. "I am not lying to you."

"All of this is your fault. You should have stayed with dad. He loved you. We are supposed to be a family." Ryan had tears in his eyes.

"Ryan." She didn't know what to say. She felt like anything she said would make it worse. "Sweetheart, you've got to listen to me."

"No I don't." Ryan yelled at her.

"I understand that you are upset, but that does not give you the right to talk to me like that. I'm still your mother."

"Unfortunately." Ryan immediately felt bad after he said it, but it was too late to take it back. He could see the pain fill her eyes.

"Until you can calm down and talk to me in a respectable manner, you can go to your room." Lorelai said calmly. She felt like she was going to cry at any moment. She was trying to keep it together.

Ryan stood there for a moment, and then stomped off upstairs.

Lorelai jumped when she heard his door slam.

"Mom," Rory walked into the living room. She and Ruby had heard the whole conversation.

"Hon, will you and Ruby go to your room and play a game or something."

"Sure mom."

"Thank you."

Rory walked away.

Lorelai grabbed the phone and Christopher's number. She wiped tears from her eyes and walked outside and around to the back porch. She sat down and dialed his number.

"Hello." He answered.

She wanted to scream at him. She wanted to call him every name in the book. She wanted to jump through the phone and strangle him.

"Hi. Christopher."

"Hey Lor."

"Why did you tell Ryan that I told you to stay away?"

"Because you implied it."

"Christopher," Lorelai said sharply. "I never said that or even implied it. I told you to call them, but you never did."

"Lorelai, he caught me off guard when he called today. I was really busy."

"You are always really busy." Lorelai told him. "You're always too busy to be a father, but I have always encouraged you to be present in their lives. And I can't believe you would let them believe otherwise." Lorelai took a moment. "Ryan is having a hard time. He needs his father."

"I know that, Lorelai. But we figured this out years ago."

"What are you talking about?"

"I work my ass off to provide for the family, and you take care of the family. That has always been our arrangement. It used to work."

"It never worked." Lorelai sighed. "It definitely isn't working now."

"I don't know what to say, Lor. I'll try to visit when I can."

"Sure."

"I will. I promise."

"Christopher, don't make promises you can't keep." Lorelai shook her head. "But don't ever lie to our kids about me again. Got it."

"I got it." Christopher said quickly.

"Goodbye, Christopher." She hung up the phone. She didn't think that conversation did any good, but it was worth the try. Now she needed to try and have a conversation with her son.

She walked back into the house and upstairs. She knocked gently on Ryan's door. He didn't respond. "Ryan." She knocked again. "Ryan, I'm coming in." She opened the door but to her surprise Ryan was not in his room. "Oh no."

* * *

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	13. Just Like Me

**I love all the love the story is getting! Keep it coming!**

 **This is a shorter chapter, but I hope you all like it just the same.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 13: Just Like Me**

Lorelai found herself pounding on the door of Luke's Diner. She saw Luke walking down the stairs from his apartment. He looked tired, but it was way too early for him to be asleep.

"Hey. Lorelai. What are you doing here?"

"Is Ryan here?"

Luke could hear the panic in her voice.

"Was he supposed to be here?" He said confusedly.

"No. He was supposed to be in his room. But I was hoping he was going to be here." Lorelai said sadly. She was trying to hide her panic, but she knew Luke could see right through her. "We had a fight."

"Oh no." Luke motioned for her to come in. "A bad one?"

"Yeah it was pretty bad. Maybe one of the worse we have ever had. I shouldn't have sent him to his room. I should have made him stay downstairs and talk it out." Lorelai rested her hands on head.

"I'm sure he is fine." Luke tried to reassure her.

"I don't know where he would have gone." Lorelai tried to hold back her tears. "I don't know this town well enough. Do you think Jess would know where he is?"

"Jess." Luke called for him up the stairs. "Jess."

"Yeah." Jess yelled from the top of the stairs.

"Get down here." Luke told him.

"What did I do?" Jess immediately turned defensive. "Hi." He noticed Lorelai.

"Jess, have you heard from Ryan?" Lorelai asked.

Jess shook his head. "No."

"Are you lying?" Luke asked.

"No. I swear. I haven't heard from him." Jess said sincerely.

Luke believed him.

"Do you know where he could be?" Lorelai asked.

Jess thought for a minute. "He might be at the bridge."

"The bridge?" Lorelai asked.

Jess nodded. "I took him there the first time we hung out."

"I have no idea where that is."

"I can take you." Luke told her. He turned to Jess. "If he comes here make sure he stays. Got it."

"Got it." Jess walked back upstairs.

"Thank you, Luke."

"We can walk. Or we can drive." Luke told her.

"Let's drive." Lorelai thought they would be able to get there quicker. She just hoped he was there and that he was okay.

They got into Luke's truck.

Lorelai was a mess. "I'm sorry for bothering you. I'm sure you were busy."

"I wasn't busy." Luke said quickly.

"You were probably about to go to sleep."

"No." He lied. "It is too early for that."

"Luke."

"Okay. Yeah. I go to bed pretty early, especially on mornings I have deliveries."

"I'm sorry." Lorelai felt bad.

"Please don't apologize. I'll be fine. I don't need all that much sleep. Usually I lay in the bed and think about the day. You actually saved me some worry." Luke wanted to make her feel better.

Lorelai nodded. She knew he was lying, but she thought it was sweet.

They sat quietly for a moment. Luke didn't want to pry. He kept his eyes on the road. He knew she would tell him more if she wanted him to know.

"He is so much like me." Lorelai admitted. "I think that is why we butt heads so much. I don't know what to do. He thinks that I don't understand how he feels. But I do. I know that he needs his father in his life. That's why I married Christopher in the first place." Lorelai was surprised that she said that out loud, but Luke was listening. That was what she needed. "Honestly, if I had only been pregnant with Rory then I wouldn't have married Christopher, but a boy needs a father. My mother said that so many times I thought those were the only words she knew. But then it back fired on me because he was hardly around, and I was still raising the kids without him. Ryan doesn't understand. I don't know how to make him understand. I can't help him with the guy stuff. As hard as I am trying, I can't be his father." Lorelai had tears in her eyes.

Luke was silent for a moment. "He should come work at the diner."

"What? Aren't there child labor laws?" Lorelai was confused. That's not what she thought he was going to say.

"A couple of hours a week. I'll pay him. It might be good for him." Luke thought. He was trying to help. "He and Jess are friends. Jess hasn't liked anyone since he moved here. They might enjoy working together. But you don't have to say yes. I just thought it might help." Luke told her. He shifted uncomfortably as he drove. He didn't want to sound stupid. "I'm a guy you know." He closed his eyes. That definitely sounded stupid. "I could help him with the guy stuff or at least lend an ear for the things he doesn't want to talk to you about."

"Oh I don't know." Lorelai laughed. She knew what Luke was trying to do, and she appreciated it.

"I mean…"

"Don't. You don't have to explain yourself. I know what you mean, and I think it is a good idea. I'll talk to Ryan about it. If I ever find him." Lorelai smiled. "But if he tells you something important you have to tell me. That's part of the parent code."

"I know. I'll keep you informed."

"I just hope he is okay."

"We're here." Luke stopped the car and pointed to the bridge. Ryan was sitting with his feet hanging off.

Lorelai sighed in relief. "Thanks, Luke." Lorelai smiled. She was relieved that Ryan was okay.

"I can wait right here."

"We can walk back. You don't have to wait. I'm pretty sure I can figure out how to get home."

"It's late."

"It's Stars Hollow. I think we will be okay." She touched his shoulder. "Thank you so much for helping me out. One day maybe you'll need my help. Don't hesitate to ask." She got out of the car.

"Good luck with that." He pointed to Ryan.

"I'm going to need it." She smiled at Luke before closing the truck door.

Luke watched her walk away. He smiled. He liked helping Lorelai. There was just something about her. He finally drove away and hoped that she would call if she needed anything else.

Lorelai made her way over to Ryan. He looked up at her and then back to the water. Lorelai sat down beside him.

They sat in silence for what felt like hours. "You know," Lorelai finally spoke, breaking the silence. "When I sent you to your room, you were actually supposed to go to your room."

"I did."

"Yes. But you were actually supposed to stay there."

"Sorry." He looked at his mom. "I…"

"Let me go first." Lorelai interrupted him. She put her hand on his shoulder. "I know that I'm not the parent that you would choose to live with if you had a choice."

Ryan stared at her. "Mom."

"No. Let me finish. I understand that. I get it. If I were a fourteen year old boy, I wouldn't be my first choice either. It is just common sense that a girl needs her mom, besides in rare cases like mine, and a boy needs his dad." She sighed. "I want you to know that I am trying, and I can't promise that I won't come up short. But I can promise you that I am going to be here for you no matter what. You can count on me in the good times and the bad." She touched his shoulder. "I love you so much, Ryan, and I hate seeing you so upset. It breaks my heart into a million little pieces."

Ryan didn't say anything. He just continued to listen.

"I know that this move has not been easy for you. I know that you don't want to be here. I know that you miss Hartford. But you have to understand that I moved us here because a fresh start is exactly what our family needed. It isn't always going to be easy. Life isn't easy. But we have got to stick together. That's the only way it is going to work. And I know that you need your dad, and I would never ever tell him to stay away from you or your sisters."

"I know." Ryan spoke. "And I know that dad was lying to me earlier." Ryan looked at her. He had tears in his eyes. "I'm sorry for being a jerk earlier."

"It's okay. You get a free pass this time." Lorelai wrapped her arms around her. "But the next time I send you to your room…" She was half smiling and half being serious.

"I know." Ryan stood up. "You ready."

Lorelai nodded as she stood up next to him. "I wanted to talk to you about something else."

"What?"

"Would you like to work at Luke's?"

"The Diner?" He questioned.

"Yeah. Luke suggested it. A couple of hours a week."

"What about child labor laws?"

She laughed at the fact that was his first reaction. "It will be a few hours a week. I thought it might be fun for you."

"It's work." Ryan didn't sound amused.

"Jess will be there most of the time, and Luke would pay you. You wouldn't have to ask me for money all the time."

"I could buy whatever I want."

"Yes. Within reason"

Ryan thought about it for a moment. "Okay."

"Okay. You want to do it."

Ryan nodded. "Sure. It might be fun. And I can quit if I don't like it."

"Yes but I want you to give it a real try."

"Okay. I will."

"Good." Lorelai smiled. "I hope you know how to get home because if not we are going to be in real trouble."

"I think I can get us home."

As they were walking, Luke pulled up in his truck.

"Luke." Lorelai said softly. "You were supposed to go home."

Luke rolled down his window. "I went home. I didn't stalk you or anything. But I thought about it and I worried that you might not know how to get home. It is dark out here. I figured I could give you a ride home."

"Thank you." Lorelai said as they got into the truck.

"Thanks, Luke." Ryan sat in the middle.

Lorelai felt really lucky to have Luke as a friend. He was a really good guy.

* * *

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	14. The Wrong Gilmore

**Sorry this has taken so long to update. I have been away from my computer this week. Thanks again for all of the support. I hope you enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 14: The Wrong Gilmore**

Rory, Ryan, and Ruby were standing in front of the house with their backpacks on. "Smile." Lorelai told them with the camera in her hand.

"Mom," Rory exclaimed. "You have taken a thousand pictures already."

"It is your first day of school. High school might I add. It is a very big deal. And as your mother I can take as many pictures as I want, and make you pose however I want."

"But mom."

"Oh come on. Just a few more." She snapped picture after picture. The kids had stopped smiling. "Now you look like I did in all of my first day of school pictures."

The kids didn't say anything they just frowned.

"Okay. I want to get one more of you walking to the car."

"Seriously." Ruby said with her hands on her hips.

"Yes. I'm always serious."

The kids groaned and moaned but walked to the car like their mother wanted.

"Perfect." Lorelai had tears in her eyes as she snapped pictures of her kids. She couldn't believe how fast they were growing up. They would be fifteen soon. She wished she could freeze Ruby and keep her six years old forever.

"Mom," Rory said from the car. "Can we go?"

"Yes. Let's go." Lorelai got in the car.

She dropped Ruby off first. Ruby was such a big girl. First grade was no big deal she said. She didn't need her mommy to walk her into school. She could handle it. Ruby gave Lorelai a kiss and told her to be a big girl, and if Lorelai didn't stay at school the whole day watching Ruby through the window then they could get a treat after school. Lorelai told her she would be okay and watched her big girl walk into school.

Lorelai dropped Ryan and Rory off at school. Ryan met up with Jess and Rory met up with Lane. Ryan promised to be on his best behavior.

Lorelai made her way to the Inn. She cried all the way there. She really wanted time to slow down. She walked into the Inn and then into the kitchen to get a cup of coffee. Sookie was sitting on the floor, crying. "Sookie," Lorelai said as she sat next to her on the floor. "Did you hurt yourself again?"

"No." Sookie continued to cry. "My kid hurt me."

"Davey?" Lorelai questioned. "What did Davey do?"

"He started kindergarten. Damn kid. Why couldn't he be stupid and stay in daycare for another year."

"I've asked myself the same question about my kids. I don't know how we ended up with such smart kids."

"I know. I wasn't very smart growing up." Sookie told her. "I don't think Jackson was either. I don't know where he gets it. I just want him to stay small forever."

"I know me too." Lorelai started to cry.

"Do you know he wanted to walk in by himself? How dare he? I had to walk five steps behind him because he is a big boy. He doesn't need me. Before I know it he will be married with kids."

Lorelai chuckled. "I think you're going to have him around for a little longer than that."

"Oh yeah. Maybe he will be one of those kids who never grows up and lives at home forever. He'll be thirty-five, still living at home, and freeloading off of us. How sweet will that be? I'll be okay with that." Sookie rattled off.

"Oh Sookie." Lorelai rested her head on Sookie's shoulder. "We're going to be okay. We are going to make it through this. Once we finally get them out of the house, I have a feeling we are going to love it."

"Yeah. We can have a girl's night every night."

"Yeah." Lorelai smiled. "I think Jackson would love that." She had never really had a girl's night before. She had friends in Hartford, but they never had a night out. She was always so focused on her kids.

"Please tell me that you have had a girl's night before."

"Nope." Lorelai admitted.

"Well as soon as we can, you and I are going to have a girl's night."

"Sounds like a good idea."

"Girls." Mia said as she walked in. "What are you two doing?" She laughed.

"Oh sorry Mia." Lorelai stood up and helped Sookie to her feet. "We'll get back to work."

"Yeah sorry Mia. Our kids are growing up way too quickly." Sookie told her.

"I know exactly how that feels." Mia wrapped her arms around the girls. "But you'll be happy to now that they will always need you no matter how old they get. Being a mother is one job that you will always have."

"Well I better get to the job I really want to keep." Lorelai smiled.

"Oh yes. I've heard your boss is the worst." Mia laughed.

* * *

Rory finished her first two classes and found her locker at the end of the hallway. She wanted to put a few of her books away. She had brought a couple of books with her from home, in case she had a chance to read one.

"Hey." She heard a voice say as her locker closed.

"Hey why did you do that?" Rory asked the blonde boy standing beside her.

"I wanted to meet the new girl."

"Well that's not the way to do it." Rory told him angrily.

"I'm Tristan." He said smugly. "I'm the welcoming committee."

Rory rolled her eyes and tried to walk away, but he stepped in front of her. "What's your name?"

"Rory." She said softly, he was making her very uncomfortable.

"I think you look like a Mary, all innocent."

"I need to get to class." She pointed to her schedule.

"Let me see that." He took it from her. "Looks like we have a couple of classes together." He handed her the schedule back.

"Thanks." Rory sighed. He was such a jerk.

"I can't wait to get to know you, Mary." He whispered in her ear.

"That's not my name." She glared at him.

"It should be." He touched her shoulder. "We are going to have so much fun together.

Rory sighed as she followed Tristan into the classroom. He made her stomach crawl.

The whole time they were in class Tristan whispered, Mary, in her ear. He aggravated her the entire time and unfortunately Ryan, Lane, and Jess weren't in her class.

"See ya later, Mary." Tristan said as the end of class.

Rory shook her head. He was such a jerk.

"Hey Rory." Ryan was waiting on her after class. She jumped a little. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." She lied. She didn't want anyone to know. She figured it would stop.

"You want to eat lunch with us? Jess is saving us all a seat."

"Sure. Sounds great." Rory was distracted.

Ryan could tell something was bothering his sister, but decided not to press her on it. Rory would talk when she was ready.

Rory finished the day. Tristan only bothered her two more times before the day was over. She was lucky that she a few of her classes with either Lane, Jess, or Ryan. Tristan didn't bother her in those classes.

Jess and Ryan went to the diner to work. Ryan was going to work for about an hour after school 3 days a week. That was the agreement he had made with his mom and Luke.

Lane and Rory were walking to Rory's house. Mrs. Kim had agreed to let her go to Rory's for one hour if she promised not to watch television or eat junk food, and they were supposed to start on their homework. Luckily for them they didn't have homework on the first day.

"Are you okay?" Lane could tell something seemed off with Rory.

"I'm fine." Rory shrugged. She wasn't a very successful liar.

"I don't think you are."

Rory didn't say anything for a moment. They walked in silence.

"What do you know about Tristan?"

"Oh. Tristan. He is the most popular kid in school and the biggest jerk. I'm surprised you have never heard of him. He's actually from Hartford."

"Why is here?"

"Stars Hollow High was the only school that would take him after he got expelled from Manchester."

"He went to Manchester." Rory was surprised. "His parents must be really rich. My grandparents couldn't even afford Manchester."

"I thought you said your grandparents are super wealthy."

"They are, but Manchester is extremely expensive."

"So why did you ask me about Tristan?" Lane wondered.

"He is in several of my classes. I was just curious."

"Do you like him?"

"Oh God no." Rory said quickly. "He seems like a jerk."

They made their way up the steps to Rory's house. "Did he bother you?"

"No. No. It's no big deal." Rory lied. "I was just wondering."

"Are you sure?" Lane wasn't completely convinced.

Rory nodded. "Do you want to get a snack?"

"Only if it's really bad for me."

"I can manage that, but don't tell my mom."

"She doesn't like you eating junk food."

"Oh she doesn't care what I eat, but she cares what you eat."

Lane looked at her with a confused stare.

"She cares because your mom cares and if she knows you ate unhealthy then she would feel like she had to tell your mom. It's mom solidarity or something." Rory explained.

"My lips are sealed." Lane pretended to zip up her lips and throw away the key.

Rory laughed. She was glad to have the distraction from her day.

* * *

At the diner, Ryan was working. He had helped Jess unload some boxes in the back, and now he was refilling empty coffee cups. Luke thought he was doing a pretty good job for his first day.

"What else do you need help with?"

Luke looked at his watch. "I think your hour is almost up."

Ryan shook his head. He seemed disappointed. "My mom won't care if I work a little longer."

"You sure about that?" He pointed to the door. Lorelai was walking into the diner.

"Mom." Ryan rolled his eyes.

"Hey," Lorelai said happily. "I thought I could walk you home."

"That's okay. You don't have to do that."

"Let me rephrase. I'm here to walk you home." Lorelai patted him on the shoulder. "Go get your stuff."

Ryan sighed but did as he was told. There was no use trying to argue with his mom.

"Where's your mini-mini me?" Luke asked.

"Sookie picked her up from school along with Davey. She was going to take them back to the Inn for ice cream sundaes. I've got to go back and pick her up later."

"Why did you come here?" Luke questioned as he walked behind the counter to pour her a cup of coffee to go.

"I wanted to see how Ryan was doing on his first day. How did he do?"

"He did great. He is a good kid." Luke handed her the cup of coffee.

"I love how you know me so well." She took a sip of her coffee. "It was a very hard day for me. My baby started first grade and didn't need me at all. And my other babies started high school. It is so scary."

"How so?"

"Well soon they will be the age that I was when I got pregnant." Lorelai sighed. "I just want them to enjoy being young, and I don't want them to make the same mistakes that I did." She admitted. Before she could say anything else, Ryan walked in carrying his things.

"I'm ready."

"Oh good. Me too."

Ryan turned to Luke. "See you tomorrow."

"Not tomorrow." Lorelai told him. "Every other day."

"Oh come on." Ryan made a face. "I thought I could do my homework here with Jess, if that's okay."

Lorelai was surprised, as was Luke. She was happy that he was talking about homework.

"That's okay with me if it is okay with your mom." Luke didn't think that it would be a problem.

Lorelai thought about it for a minute. "I'm okay with it."

"Awesome." Ryan said as he walked out of Luke's.

"Thanks for this." Lorelai was so grateful for Luke. She didn't know how she could ever thank him enough.

"It's no problem." For some reason, he liked to see her happy and wanted to do whatever he could to help her out.

Lorelai gave him a smile before walking outside to meet Ryan. "So tell me, how was your first day?" She placed her arm around his shoulder as they started walking. She knew he was embarrassed, but she didn't care.

"It was alright."

"Just alright?"

"Yes."

"Better than Hartford?"

Ryan didn't say anything.

"Huh?"

Ryan nodded as he escaped her grip. "Yeah. It's easier."

Lorelai smiled. "I'll take it. Are you beginning to like it here, after all?"

"I guess so. It isn't too bad. I like Luke. He is nice."

Lorelai was hopeful. At least Ryan had Luke. He seemed like a very good role model, much better than Christopher.

* * *

A few days later, Rory was worried about running into Tristan. He had been bullying her all week. She didn't say anything to her mom about what was happening at school. Anytime Lorelai asked her, she would say she loved it and had a great time.

"Hey Rory."

Rory cringed at the sound of his voice, but at least he called her Rory.

"Oh sorry. I meant Mary."

"Please leave me alone."

"Where's the fun in that." He followed her to the class door. "I'm going to sit right beside you." He touched her shoulder.

"I can't." She said as she turned away from the class and ran off down the hall.

Rory couldn't believe she had walked away from class, but she couldn't take it. Although, she didn't know where to go. She decided to sneak into the gym and read a book until her History class was over.

Rory was immersed in her book when she heard footsteps approaching. "Excuse me."

She looked up to see the principal standing in front of her. Her heart fell to her stomach. She knew she was in big trouble.

* * *

Michel and Lorelai were at the front desk at the Independence Inn. Lorelai was planning a guest wedding. "I can't believe how many flowers these people want."

Michel just looked at her.

"Lorelai," Mia walked around the corner. "The Turners just called to add fifty people to the guest list."

"What? That's crazy. How do these people know so many people?" Lorelai was frustrated. They had changed the guest list three times already.

"I know, but I told them that we would accommodate them."

"I will figure it out." Lorelai told her as she made a note in her notebook.

The phone rang and Michel answered it. "Hello. Independence Inn. This is Michel speaking." He turned to Lorelai. "It is for you."

"Me." She pointed.

He shoved the phone in her direction.

"Hello. This is Lorelai." Lorelai's facial expression changed. "What? Are you sure you have the right Gilmore. Okay. Yes I understand. Thank you. I will be right there." Lorelai hung up the phone. She was shocked.

"Is everything okay?" Mia asked.

"Rory got in trouble at school." Lorelai couldn't believe how it sounded coming out of her mouth. It was almost like a dirty word. Rory never got into trouble.

"Go. Go." Mia told her. "Call me."

"Thanks Mia." She grabbed her things and walked out of the Inn. It really had to be some kind of joke. They had the wrong Gilmore.

* * *

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	15. Extra Coco

**Thank you so much for all the support! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 15 Extra Coco**

Lorelai and Rory walked into their house. Rory hadn't spoken two words since Lorelai had picked her up from school. She had been extremely upset in the principal's office. Lorelai had never seen her so upset. The principal suggested Lorelai take her home for the rest of the day. Ryan would bring Rory's assignments home with him, and Rory would have detention the next day for skipping class. Lorelai was in disbelief. She never thought that she would hear detention and Rory's name in the same sentence. It didn't make sense to her.

Rory headed to her room. "Wait a minute." Lorelai said, standing in the living room. "Come in here please." Lorelai wasn't sure what she was going to say.

Rory dropped her head and walked back to the living room. She was nervous. She had never been in trouble before, at least not outside of arguing with Ryan at home. She was always on her best behavior at school.

Lorelai pointed to the couch and Rory sat down. Lorelai was nervous too. She wasn't used to Rory getting into trouble either. Lorelai was smart enough to know that something was going on with her daughter. After pacing the floor for a moment, Lorelai sat across from Rory. "What happened today, Rory?"

Rory shrugged.

"Oh come on. Don't play shy with me. I know you know how to form full fledged sentences."

Rory looked away from Lorelai. "I decided I didn't want to go to history. I wanted to read my book." It wasn't actually a lie. She was just omitting some of the truth.

Lorelai knew she was lying. "Are you sure you didn't get lost?"

"I didn't get lost."

"You haven't been in that school very long. You should have told the principal you were lost. He would have believed you."

"It would have been a lie. I wasn't lost."

"Well why don't you tell me the truth? What's going on?" Lorelai was beginning to get frustrated with her oldest daughter.

"Nothing." Rory shook her head. "It is no big deal."

"I wish I had a dollar every time one of my kids said something was no big deal. Rory, this isn't like you. You don't get into trouble."

"Maybe I'm a different person in Stars Hollow."

"No. Rory stop saying that. A town does not make you a different person." Lorelai was not having it. "You are the same Rory you have always been. You have always been able to talk to me about anything. That will never change."

"There is nothing to tell. I skipped class, and now I have detention tomorrow." Rory was worried that it would go on her permanent record, and she would never get into Chilton. "And now you have to punish me." Rory told her mother.

"Rory." Lorelai sighed. She didn't want to punish Rory. She just wanted her to tell her what happened. There had to be a reason why she skipped class.

"That's the rule, mom. If we get into trouble at school then there is a consequence at home. You have to give me a consequence."

"Rory, I know there is something else going on. This is so out of character for you." Lorelai didn't like to punish her kids, especially when she had a feeling something else was going on. "Come on, Rory. Tell me what's going on."

"Nothing." Rory felt so bad about not telling her mom. She always told her everything, but this time was different. She knew telling her mom would only make it worse. "I just decided not to go to class."

Lorelai didn't believe her, but there was nothing else she could do if Rory wouldn't talk to her. "Okay. Fine. You can spend the rest of the day in your room."

"Okay. Thanks, mom." Rory stood up to go to her room.

"Rory." Lorelai shook her head. "You aren't supposed to thank me for punishing you." Rory definitely was a special kid.

"Well yes, but I know it was hard for you." Rory gave her mom a hug.

Lorelai watched her daughter walk to her room. She would figure out what was going on with her.

* * *

Luke walked into the Independence Inn, carrying a Luke's Diner bag. He looked over at the front desk only to see Michel. He sighed. He hoped to see Lorelai. He didn't want to deal with the angry Frenchman. He walked further into the Inn, looking around hoping to run into her.

"Hey Luke." Mia said as she saw him rounding the corner. "Are you looking for someone?"

"Oh no…no…" Luke said nervously. "I'm not looking for anyone really."

Mia smiled slightly. He was not fooling her. "What's in the bag?" She pointed.

"Oh." Luke had almost forgotten that he had brought food with him. "I cooked too many brownies."

"Oh really. I didn't think you could have too many brownies in a diner."

"Oh well I made these with too much coco powder." Luke admitted. "I could only think of one person who would enjoy that much coco powder."

"She isn't here." Mia smiled even bigger.

Luke suddenly felt disappointed. He looked at his watch. He was sure that she would be there. "Okay."

"You could take them to her house. She probably could use them."

"How so? Is she sick?"

Mia shook her head. "No. Rory got in trouble at school today. Lorelai is spending the rest of the day with her."

"Rory?" Luke was confused. "There has to be some mistake. She is such an awesome kid."

"Lorelai called and said she skipped class." Mia told him.

Luke still couldn't believe it.

"But I think you should take those brownies to her. I really think it would make her day better."

"Yeah. That's probably a good idea." Luke smiled. "See ya, Mia."

"Goodbye, Lucas."

Luke loved when Mia called him that. It made him think of his mom. He really missed her.

Sookie popped out of the corner.

"Sookie," Mia was surprised. "What are you doing?"

"I was listening in on your conversation."

"At least you are honest."

"I think he likes our Lorelai." Sookie jumped up and down.

"Sookie, we cannot interfere." Mia warned her.

"But Mia," Sookie started.

"If it is meant to be then it will be." Mia was sure of that.

"But how cute was he bringing her brownies. I bet he poured too much coco powder on purpose. How precious." Sookie couldn't stop smiling. Sookie looked at Mia. "Okay. I know. We won't interfere. I'll get back to work." Sookie started to walk away.

"Hey Sookie." Mia stopped her. "It was really precious."

"They are going to be the cutest couple in town." Sookie danced all the way back to the kitchen.

* * *

Lorelai was sitting on the couch folding the laundry. She found it hard to concentrate on anything other than Rory. Her mom instincts were screaming at her. She knew there was something else bothering her daughter, and it was killing her that Rory wouldn't talk to her.

She had almost knocked on Rory's door three times, but decided it was best to give her some space. Honestly, she wasn't sure what else she could say.

She was taken out of her thoughts, by a knock on the door. She placed a folded towel on the couch and walked to the door. She was surprised to see Luke standing on the other side. "Hi."

"Hey." He held out a Luke's Diner bag. "I thought you might like these."

She took the bag and opened it slightly. She smiled. "Brownies. I love brownies."

"Extra coco." He told her.

"Oh wow." Lorelai took a pinch of the chocolate brownie. "Delicious. Brownies are my favorite. Extra coco is just an added bonus. How did you know that?" She felt special that he would bring her bag of brownies. It was sweet.

"You come to the diner almost every day and order 10 pounds of coffee." Luke told her matter-of-factly.

"That is true." She took another bite. "It is like you're psychic. Today hasn't been the best day."

"I heard. How's Rory?"

Lorelai looked at him, wondering how he found out.

"Mia."

Lorelai nodded. Of course. She pointed to the front porch and closed the door behind her. "She isn't talking to me. I know that something is going on with her. Rory doesn't get into trouble, at least not on her own. I never have to worry about her. But this time, I'm really worried." Lorelai sighed. She hated when any of her kids were going through something. It made her feel helpless and like a bad mother.

"Have you talked to Ryan? He may know something."

Lorelai chuckled. "Yeah right. Ryan isn't going to tell me anything about Rory. He barely tells me anything about himself." Lorelai sat on the porch steps. Luke followed suit. "Rory has always been able to talk to me. It really bothers me. You know. She is in her room being punished. It feels so weird to me. I've only ever sent her to her room after some of her fights with Ryan."

"So you sent her to her room?"

"She made me. But that's Rory for you." Lorelai took another bite of brownie. "This brownie is making me feel better, like it has special powers or something."

He put his finger up to his mouth, "Shhh. Don't give away all of my secrets."

"They are safe with me." She smiled at him. She had never noticed before, but he had beautiful eyes.

"You know, kids get in trouble, Lorelai. It happens to the best of them."

"Not my Rory."

Luke shrugged. He thought Rory was probably the most perfect kid he had ever met, but he also knew that no kid was perfect. "I could talk to Jess if you want. Maybe he knows what's going on."

"Yeah." Lorelai nodded. "That would be great. The quicker I can figure out what is going on, the less likely chance that I'll be called into the principal's office because my kid skipped class."

"It's going to be fine."

"How do you know that?"

He shrugs. "I just have that feeling. I guess that's another one of my special powers." He smiled. "Besides I've seen you with your kids. It is pretty impressive. You are a great mom."

Lorelai wasn't as sure as Luke. "I wish there was something that would tell you if you are getting it right."

Luke touched her shoulder. Lorelai reacted by flinching a little. Luckily, Luke didn't notice. "You are getting it right. Don't ever second guess yourself as a mother." He stood up. "I should probably get back to the diner."

"Sure you don't want a brownie." She opened the bag for him.

He shook his head. "No thanks. One bite would send me into a diabetic coma."

"Oh good. More for me." She took one more bite. "Delicious."

* * *

Jess and Ryan were walking out of school. "You want to go to Uncle Luke's. We could pretend to study."

"I told my mom I would take Rory her assignments as soon as I got out of school."

"She might not care if you are a little late." Jess enjoyed when Ryan joined him at Luke's.

Ryan shook his head. "Maybe tomorrow. I still can't believe my sister got into trouble."

"I heard a rumor. I don't know how true it is though."

"About my sister?" Ryan questioned as they continued to walk towards the square.

Jess nodded. "Yep."

"What?" Ryan stopped walking. "What did you hear?"

"I think that jerk, Tristan, is bullying her."

"Someone is bullying my sister?" He became defensive. They didn't always get alone, but he never wanted anyone to bother her.

"Tristan is the biggest ass in school. Rumor is that he likes Rory and his way of showing it is by giving her a hard time."

"He's an idiot. That's no way to get a girl to like you." Ryan didn't know a whole lot about getting a girl to like you, but he knew bullying was not the answer. "I'm going to kill him." Ryan was pissed.

"Don't." Jess grabbed his arm. "You should talk to your sister. Make sure the rumor is true."

"Then I can kill him."

Jess shook his head. "Maybe I'm rubbing off on you."

"It makes sense though. Rory would never get into trouble unless it was someone else's fault. Usually mine."

"Well just talk to her."

"You're right. I better go."

"Sure you don't want to pretend to study and actually play some video games?"

Ryan shook his head. He wanted too, but he knew that he needed to talk to his sister. "I need to talk to Rory. And besides my mom is probably in a mood."

"What kind of mood?"

"Oh her 'one of my kids got into trouble so I want to keep my other kids close' mood. I'm usually the kid that caused the trouble. Now I know how Rory feels."

"Alright. See ya later."

"See ya." Ryan walked off towards his house.

* * *

Ryan tried to talk to Rory before dinner, but she didn't want to talk. She just wanted to be left alone.

After dinner, Rory went straight to her room. Ruby asked for ice cream. Lorelai said she would take her into town. She asked Rory and Ryan if they wanted to go with her. Rory reminded her that she had to stay in her room for the rest of the night, and in no uncertain terms could her mom bring her back any ice cream. It was part of the punishment. Ryan also decided not to go. He wanted some time to talk to Rory. He reminded his mom that he wasn't being punished, and she could bring him back some rocky road.

He knocked on Rory's door. "Rory."

"Go away." Rory said from the other side of the door.

"Nope," Ryan walked in to see his sister sitting on her bed reading a book. "What's going on with you?"

"Nothing."

Ryan shook his head and sat on the edge of her bed. "I'm not buying it."

"I'm not selling anything."

Ryan laughed. "You're more like mom than I thought. You can talk to me, Rory."

"There is nothing to talk about."

"I heard you were getting picked on by Tristan." Ryan decided to tell her what he knew.

Rory's face turned red. She didn't say anything.

"Why haven't you told mom? You know she would kick that guy's ass."

"No." Rory shook her head. "I can't tell her. I don't want her to kick anyone's ass. I don't want her to worry about it."

"That makes no sense." Ryan stood up. "You don't keep things from mom. That's my job."

"It's not a big deal. I'm handling it."

"You aren't handling it." Ryan reminded her.

"You can't tell mom."

"I don't understand why you don't want to tell mom. You haven't given me a good reason not to tell her."

Rory closed her book. "If I tell her, she will worry. She will get upset and blame herself. You know how mom is. And then after that she will go down to the school cause a scene and it won't make things better. It will probably make things worse. I don't want to worry her."

"It sounds like you don't want to deal with it."

Rory shrugged. "Please don't say anything. I'll figure it out on my own."

"Rory." Ryan wasn't sure.

"I've kept secrets for you. Now it is your turn."

Ryan's eyes grew larger. He was surprised at his sister's game play. "Fine. But I can help you out."

"You don't have too. I'll be fine."

But the sound of her voice made him nervous. He knew that it was bothering her more than she was saying. He would make sure that Tristan would leave her alone for good.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	16. Not Again

**I am so sorry for the lack of updates. I'm off this week and should have a lot of time to write. You should be getting updates more often. As always, thanks for the support! It means a lot.**

 **I hope everyone has had a very happy holidays!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 16: Not Again**

A few days had passed since Rory had gotten into trouble. She served her detention. It wasn't too bad. She did her homework and had time to read one of her books.

She still hadn't talked to Lorelai about what really happened. She was glad that her mom wasn't pressuring her on it. Rory knew she could handle it on her own. Or so she wanted to believe she could.

Rory was relieved that Tristan had left her alone for the most part. She could handle him calling her Mary. It were the other things that were bothering her.

She stood at her locker and pulled out her algebra book. "Hey." Lane approached her. "How was the weekend?"

"It was good. I didn't really do anything."

"Still in trouble for the detention?"

Rory shook her head. "No. My mom is really cool. I'm the one that felt bad about getting in trouble."

"That's nice. I would have been grounded for at least a week if I had gotten detention. Want to switch moms?"

"I think I'll keep mine. She is pretty great."

Rory closed her locker.

"So did you tell her the real reason you missed class?" Lane asked.

Rory looked surprised. How did she know? "What do you mean real reason?"

Lane looked at her matter-of-factly. "Rory, I know you didn't skip class to read a book." Lane was not dumb, and although she hadn't known Rory very long, she knew her well enough.

"I love to read." Rory smiled, hoping her friend would believe her. She really didn't want to get into it.

"Yes. But you didn't skip class to read a book." Lane tapped Rory on the shoulder. "I heard about Tristan."

"What about him?" Rory became defensive.

"He is picking on you."

Rory didn't say anything.

"You should say something."

"No." Rory told her. "I can't. I don't want to worry my mom. It's not that bad."

"Rory." Lane was worried about her friend.

"Lane, please just drop it, okay." Rory begged.

Lane sighed. She didn't want to push it. "Fine." She gave in. "But Rory I'm worried about you."

"Don't worry about me. I can handle it."

Unfortunately, Lane didn't believe her.

* * *

Jess and Ryan walked into class and sat down. "I need your help." Ryan said in a quiet voice.

"With what?"

"Rory said she could handle the thing with Tristan, but I don't believe her." Ryan admitted. "I'm going to help her out."

"You can't kill him." Jess reminded him.

"I'm not going to kill him. I just want to talk to him and make sure that he leaves my sister alone." Ryan told him. "I promise nothing bad is going to happen."

Jess thought about it as the teacher walked into class. "Okay. But I can't get into trouble. My uncle will kill me."

"Thanks, man. You won't get into trouble."

* * *

Lorelai was at the Inn writing place cards for an event they were having in a few days. Mia approached the table. "Hi there. I brought you a cup of coffee."

Lorelai looked up. "Aw thank you." She took the coffee. "You know me so well."

Mia sat beside her. "How are things at home?"

"Surprisingly okay. We had a quiet weekend."

"Rory?" Mia asked.

"Still quiet, but I think I have to let this one play out. Which is really hard for me. I like to know every possible detail of my children's lives. Is that so much to ask?"

"Says every mother ever." Mia laughed.

"I know they are growing up, but I wish I could freeze them in time and keep them my babies forever."

"Again says every mother ever."

"I know I sound awful."

Mia shook her head. "No you sound like a caring mother." Mia touched Lorelai's shoulder. "You should be proud of yourself. You have pretty amazing kids."

"Yeah." Lorelai smiled thinking of her kids. They were pretty amazing.

"But you know…Lorelai, I think you spend a lot of time focusing on your kids and that's great. They are lucky to have you."

"But," Lorelai knew there was a but in there.

"You are a young, beautiful woman you should focus on yourself a little." Mia hoped she wasn't overstepping her boundaries. She thought Lorelai needed to hear it. "You deserve it."

"Oh Mia. You sound like Sookie." Lorelai told her. "I'm fine. I was married for years. I've been there done that. My kids are the most important thing in my world. I like it that way."

"Well from what you told me it wasn't a happy marriage."

Lorelai grimaced. Mia was right about her marriage. It hadn't been a good one, but it sounded so bad to hear someone say it out loud.

"Lorelai, you deserve all the happiness in the world. I don't want you to watch your happiness pass you by."

"Where is this coming from?" Lorelai wondered.

"Sometimes I like to butt in where I probably shouldn't. I just want you to be aware if an opportunity for happiness knocks on your door. You know sometimes it can be in the form of a brownie."

The light bulb went off in Lorelai's head. She knew exactly what Mia was talking about. "Mia, are you talking about Luke."

Mia stood up and looked at her watch. "Oh wow look at that. I've got to get going. I've got a meeting. Just think about what I said."

"Mia," Lorelai called out for her, but she was already gone. Lorelai shook her head. She didn't know why everyone thought that she needed a man. Lorelai was fine. She was a fiercely independent woman, and she was perfectly happy with how her life was. For the first time in her life, she was getting to do life her way.

* * *

Sookie was sitting at the counter at Luke's. Luke walked out from the back and was surprised to see her. "What are you doing here?"

"Is that how you treat all of your customers?"

Luke walked so that he was in front of her. "Only the ones that come to criticize how I run my business and the food I cook."

"I've only done that a few times." Sookie defended herself.

Luke scoffed. "Every time you come in the damn place."

"Well good thing I don't come here very often." Sookie smiled. She wasn't here to argue with him. "This time I'm just here to have a burger."

"I don't believe you. Besides, why aren't you at work? Don't you run a kitchen at the Inn?"

"You don't have to believe me. You just have to serve me." Sookie told him as she shifted in her seat. "And today is my day off."

"Weird day to have off." Luke noted.

"Don't worry about my days off. Just serve me a burger."

"Fine." Luke narrowed his eyes. "I'll serve you, but if you say one word about my food or my service you are out of here." Luke pointed to the door. He wanted her to know he wasn't playing around.

Sookie smiled. She loved her friendship with Luke. If you asked Luke, he would never admit they were friends, but Sookie was convinced they were. Their banter was always friendly banter, except for the one time he did kick her out and told her never to come back. It took her three weeks to make her way back into the diner. "I promise. Not a word."

"All you want is a burger?"

Sookie nodded.

Luke put the order in and walked back to the counter.

"Oh Luke," Sookie remembered. "Can I have a cup of coffee?"

"Okay." Luke poured her a cup.

"You know Lorelai says you have the best coffee in town. Maybe even the world." Sookie smiled at him.

"She does?" Luke asked, curiously.

"Yeah." Sookie nodded.

"Okay." Luke decided not to engage further.

"You know, Luke." Sookie slid down to another seat as Luke started to walk away. "Since we are talking about Lorelai." Sookie tried to play it casually.

"I thought we were talking about coffee."

"No." Sookie shook her head. "We were talking about how great Lorelai is."

Luke raised an eyebrow. He was pretty sure they were talking about coffee. "Yeah."

"Yeah? That's a she's great, right? You think she is great." Sookie hoped for more information. She never could tell what Luke was thinking.

Luke didn't answer. He thought it was best to keep his thoughts to himself.

"She thinks you are great." Sookie told him. Lorelai had never actually said the words, but Sookie could read her mind. She knew Lorelai had to like him.

"She said that?" Luke was surprised.

"Of course." Sookie said excitedly. "She really likes how great you have been with Ryan." That was true. "He needs a father figure." That was also true, but Lorelai hadn't said that about Luke.

"She said I was his father figure?" Luke asked, that was a lot a pressure to put on someone. Although he really did like Ryan.

"Well not exactly father figure." Sookie began to back pedal. "Male. That was the word she used. Male figure. A good male figure."

"Uh huh."

"I just think the two of you have a lot in common." Sookie admitted.

"Sookie," Luke placed his hands on the counter, hoping to get her attention. "I what you are trying to do. But I'm going to give you some advice." He leaned over closer to her. "Stay out of it."

"But Luke." Sookie began to protest.

"No. Lorelai is a very nice woman, a little crazy, but nice nonetheless. However, neither one of us need you to set us up."

"So you'll get together on your own?" Sookie asked, hopeful.

"Stay out of it." Luke said again, a little harsher than the first time. "I mean it, Sookie. Stay out of it." He walked to the back.

Sookie sighed. She was still hopeful. She could tell by the look in his eyes. He liked Lorelai.

* * *

Back at the high school, Rory was sitting at one of the benches by herself reading. She was waiting on Lane. They were planning on having lunch together.

"Hey there, Mary." Tristan said as he approached her.

Rory grimaced. Tristan was the last person on the planet that she wanted to see. "Leave me alone. I'm tired of dealing with you."

"Oh come on, Mary. You know you like me."

"Only in your dreams." Rory said sassier than usual. She was really frustrated with him and completely over it.

"You can visit me in your dreams." Tristan sat beside her. "Anytime you want." He whispered in her ear as he touched her shoulder.

"Get your hands off my sister." Ryan said as he rounded the corner to see that jerk messing with his sister.

"Go away buzzkill. Your sister and I are fine."

"She hates you." Ryan said as he grabbed Tristan's jacket and pulled him away from Rory.

"Don't touch me." Tristan jerked away from his grip. "You're ruining the mood little dude."

"Don't call me dude." Ryan said with a glare.

"Ryan, don't worry about him. Let's all go to lunch." Jess said. He knew that Ryan wanted to talk to Tristan, but he had a feeling something bad was going to happen. Ryan had a look in his eyes. The same one Jess was sure he got before he started punching people.

"I just call them like I see them." Tristan glared back at Ryan. Rory watched on in fear. She wasn't sure what was about to happen.

"Well you are first class dick."

"Takes one to know one."

Ryan shook his head. "You have some real nerve. You are the one picking on my sister."

"Your sister isn't innocent." Tristan told him. "She's into this." Tristan winked at Rory, giving her chills.

Before Ryan knew what he was doing he had punched Tristan in the face, and then when Tristan gained his balance, he hit him again.

"Ryan." Rory and Ryan spoke in unison. This was not good. Not good at all.

* * *

Lorelai was placing the name cards on the tables in the small dining room. Michel walked in holding the phone. "It's for you."

"Thanks Michel." She said as he handed it to her. "Hello. This is Lorelai." Lorelai listened the voice on the other end. She almost didn't believe it. "Yes. I understand. I will be right there." Lorelai hung up the phone and sighed.

Michel was still standing beside her. "One of your delinquents in trouble again?"

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Now is not the time, Michel. I've got to go."

"You can't keep leaving because your children are trouble." Michel warned her.

Lorelai decided to ignore his comments. "Will you let Mia know that I had to leave?"

"I'm not you assistant." He reminded her.

"I don't care. Just do it." Lorelai said as she walked out of the room. She couldn't believe this was happening yet again.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	17. One Shrug Too Many

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter. As always, I am so grateful for the support. Every review, follow, and fave means the world to me.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 17: One Shrug too Many**

Lorelai walked into Stars Hollow High and made her way to the principal's office. The same thing she had done only a few short days earlier. Only this time it was a different kid, and there he was as she rounded the corner.

It was the same place Rory had been sitting the week before. However, Rory had been an inconsolable mess. Ryan on the other hand, had no tears. He was staring at the ground so hard she thought he might burn a whole into the floor.

She paused for a moment, taking the sight in. Him sitting there like he was, brought back a flash of memories for her. There had been many times in her young life where she had been sitting outside the principal's office waiting for her mother or father to come bouncing in with disappointed looks plastered on their faces. The look on their faces was always worse than any punishment they ever dealt out. She knew they thought she enjoyed disappointing them, but that was the farthest thing from the truth. She hated it, but it had always been inevitable.

Lorelai tried her best to make her face not look as disappointed as theirs always had. At least not until she found out what he had done.

She walked to where he was standing and cleared her throat. Ryan looked up at her with his deep blue eyes. "Hey kid. Fancy meeting you here." She tried her best to lighten the mood.

Ryan didn't speak. He wasn't sure what to say, and he couldn't quiet tell by the look on her face, if she were mad at him or not. She seemed rather chill.

"Ms. Gilmore." They heard Katherine, the principal's secretary say. "Principal Medina will see you now."

Lorelai gulped. She was suddenly more nervous than before.

Ryan looked up at his mom. He was awaiting confirmation. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to join her in the principal's office.

"Both of you." Katherine answered their unspoken question.

Ryan sighed. He would have rather stayed on the bench.

Lorelai tugged at his shoulder, and he followed his mother into Mr. Medina's office.

"Ms. Gilmore, it is nice to see you again." He shook her hand, and they all took their respective seats.

"I wish it were under better circumstances." He admitted.

"Yes," She looked at Ryan, who tried his best to avoid eye contact as much as possible. "Me too." She looked back at the principal and then back at Ryan. "So who wants to tell me what happened?"

Max looked at Ryan. "Would you like to tell her?"

Ryan shrugged. He would rather not tell her.

"Ryan got into a fight." Max told her, seeing that he wouldn't get anywhere with Ryan.

"You were fighting?" Lorelai was surprised. Ryan was not a stranger to trouble but he was not a fighter.

Ryan nodded.

"Did you start the fight?"

Ryan still avoided eye contact.

"He did." Mr. Medina answered. "And the other boy didn't fight back. Ryan hit him until a teacher separated them. We believe Tristan's nose might be broken."

"No way." Lorelai couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Not only did you fight with someone but you started the fight and broke his nose." She found herself becoming angrier. She knew now that she couldn't hide the look of disappointment on her face. This didn't sound like her son at all.

Ryan didn't say anything and little did he realize that his silence was not helping his case.

"Ryan," Lorelai cocked her head and looked at her son. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

Ryan shrugged.

"Oh come on Ryan. You grew up with me as your mother. I know I have taught you a few words over the years. Start explaining yourself." Lorelai crossed her arms for added effect.

"Tristan is a jerk." Ryan knew as soon as the words had left his mouth that it wasn't the right thing for him to say.

"Did Tristan do something to you, Ryan?" Max asked.

Ryan didn't speak. He knew his sister didn't want their mom to know about Tristan and the bullying.

"Ryan," Lorelai tapped him on the shoulder. "Answer your principal."

"He didn't do anything to me." Ryan admitted. It was technically the truth. Tristan hadn't done anything to Ryan.

"Then why did you hit him?" Lorelai asked. She knew there had to be a reason for her son to hit someone. And if there were no reason then she had more than one probably.

Ryan shrugged yet again.

Frustration filled Lorelai from head to toe. "Ryan Gilmore, I swear to God if you shrug one more time it is not going to be good for you."

Ryan jumped slighted. She sounded a lot like his grandmother, and it was creepy.

"He is a jerk." He knew it wasn't the best defense, but it was all he had.

"I understand you feel that way." Lorelai told her son. "But that is no reason to punch someone once, let alone multiple times. I can't figure out what you were thinking."

"I told you what I was thinking. He is a jerk. He deserved what he got and probably much more." He knew he was only digging the hole deeper.

"I can't believe what I am hearing right now." Lorelai was shocked.

"Can we just get my punishment over with?" Ryan knew by the look on his mom's face that his bad attitude was not helping matters.

"Unbelievable." Lorelai glared at her son. She wasn't sure what else to say. "What can we do to fix this?" She turned her attention towards Max.

"According to the handbook fighting is an immediate three day suspension."

"No." Lorelai gimmaced. "Oh please don't do that. Do anything else but that. It is only the first few weeks of school. A suspension would go on his record. It would hurt him, and I know that has to be the last thing that you would want as the fine leader of this establishment."

"Ms. Gilmore rules are rules."

"I know that. Believe me when I say that I know that. But I'm asking you to make an exception." She looked at her son. "Trust me after I'm done with Ryan he will never do anything like this again."

If Ryan had any doubt about being in trouble before, he definitely didn't now.

Max looked at Lorelai and then back at Ryan. "Well since it is his first offense I guess I could make an exception. But Ryan has to write a letter of apology to Tristan, and serve two weeks of detention."

"Two weeks?" Ryan rolled his eyes. If only he could tell them that he was defending his sister from that jerk.

"I think that is fair." Lorelai gave him a look. She was extremely relieved.

"I'm not writing that guy an apology." Ryan said as he realized what his principal had said.

"Oh yes you are." Lorelai said sternly. "That's not up for debate."

"He doesn't deserve an apology."

"Ryan. If you don't write the letter, I will have to suspend you for three days."

"Fine. I don't care. I'm not writing a letter."

Lorelai stood up out of frustration. "Hell no. You are not going to have a suspension on your record. Do you understand? You are writing that letter. You are serving two weeks of detention. And you are not going to complain. That is final. There will be no argument." Lorelai yelled.

Ryan was surprised. He had never seen his mom so mad at him before. She had been mad and raised her voice. But not like this. He could see the steam bubbling from her ears.

Lorelai turned to the principal. "Thank you, Mr. Medina. We accept the deal." She shook his hand as he stood up.

"I think that is a good idea." He looked at Ryan. "You can take a few days to write the letter and then give it to me when you are finished." He told Ryan and turned his attention back to Lorelai. "You can take him home for the rest of the day. I hate that we keep meeting like this."

Lorelai shook her head. "Me too. But I can assure you that it won't happen again." She glanced over at her son. "Right, Ryan."

"Right." Ryan said quietly.

"I will see you in detention tomorrow afternoon."

"Yes sir."

"Alright. Let's go." Lorelai touched Ryan's shoulder and led him out of the office.

As they walked out of the office, Rory was waiting on them. "Rory." Lorelai said when she noticed her.

"Mom." She then looked at her brother. She wasn't sure what he had told their mom.

"What are you doing? Shouldn't you be in class?" Lorelai was concerned. She didn't want Rory to get into any more trouble.

"The bell hasn't rung yet. I wanted to check on Ryan. Is everything okay?"

"No. But it will be." Lorelai told her. "You just need to get to class. Don't worry about your brother."

"Yeah Rory. Don't worry." He gave her a look, and Rory realized that he hadn't said anything about her involvement in the matter. He had taken one for the team. Ryan had a way of doing that for her.

"Go to class. We will see you at home." Lorelai kissed her daughter's forehead and led Ryan away.

Rory made her way to class and set next to Jess. "Did you see your brother?" He asked.

Rory nodded. "Yeah. My mom is taking him home."

"Do you think he got suspended?"

"They didn't say." Rory sighed. "This is all my fault. My mom looked pretty mad."

"Rory, this is not your fault. This is Tristan's fault."

"My brother shouldn't have punched him."

"He deserved it." Jess argued. "You know he deserved it."

"Yeah but now my brother is in trouble."

"You could always tell your mom."

"I don't want to tell her."

"Maybe we can figure something out."

"Like what?" Rory didn't know what they could do.

"I don't know, but we will figure it out." Jess told her. He didn't have the answers but together he knew they could come up with something. Tristan had to be stopped.

* * *

Lorelai and Ryan walked into their house, and Ryan immediately tried to escape to his room. "Uh no way." Lorelai stopped him. "You do not get to run and hide in your bedroom."

Ryan turned to face his mother. "Can we please just skip the lecture?"

Lorelai sighed and shook her head. "First, you need to lose the attitude. And second, I just picked you up from school where you were caught punching some kid, so if I want to lecture you for the next 24-hours then you are going to sit here and listen without complaint."

"Mom."

"No. That sounded like the beginning of a complaint." Lorelai pointed the couch. "Take a seat. Make yourself comfortable."

Ryan sighed but did as he was told. Lorelai sat on the couch next to him. She was going to try her best to remain calm and give him a chance to explain. Maybe he would do a better job with it being just the two of them.

"Tell me what happened?"

"You already know what happened. I got into a fight."

"But why? Why did you hit that boy?" Lorelai really needed to understand what happened.

Ryan thought about it. He could tell her the truth. He could tell her that Tristan was bullying Rory. That he was protecting his sister. But he knew Rory didn't want her to know. And honestly he didn't want to worry his mom any more than he already had. She didn't know the truth.

"I just felt like it." It was the only thing he could think of. It was the worst excuse of all time. He usually was much better at coming up with excuses, but this time he came up empty handed.

"Oh no. I refuse to believe that is the reason you hit someone. I know you haven't completely lost your mind."

"Maybe I have." Ryan was making it worse.

"Ryan. I'm going to try this one more time, and you better think long and hard about your response." She warned him.

Ryan closed his eyes. He knew what she was going to ask, and he also knew that he was not going to give her the response she wanted to hear.

"Why did you hit that boy?" Lorelai asked again. She watched as her son thought about it. She could tell that he was in fact really thinking about what he would say. Maybe that was a good sign.

"All you need to know about what happened is that he deserved. He really is a jerk. He said something stupid. I got mad, and I hit him."

"What did he say?"

"That's not important."

Lorelai glared at him. "Yes. Yes it is important to me."

Ryan shrugged. "Well I'm sorry but I'm not going to tell you."

"Ryan."

"I've told you all I'm going to tell you."

Lorelai was furious. "I cannot believe how you are behaving." She stood up. "I don't think you understand how serious this is. You could been suspended."

"But I wasn't." Ryan said matter-of-factly.

"Because I had to grovel like a crazy woman."

"Thanks." Ryan said in a snarky tone.

It was way more snarky than Lorelai wanted to hear. "You know what. I have had it with this attitude of yours. I'm not raising you to be a jerk. You need to understand that your actions have consequences. So you're grounded." In that moment, she felt so much like her mother.

"What?" Ryan was surprised. He knew he was going to be in trouble, but he didn't think she would ground him. "For how long?"

"I don't know. Until I think you have learned your lesson. I don't want you to do something like this ever again."

"So you think grounding me for the foreseeable future is the answer."

"Yes. I do. I don't know what else to do. You don't seem to care about what you did."

"He deserved it."

"Yes. You keep saying that, but if you won't tell me why he deserved it then I can't be on your side." Lorelai told him. She didn't want to ground him, but she really didn't know what else to do. "I'll pick you up tomorrow after detention."

"Tomorrow is my day to work at Luke's." He told her

"You are not working at Luke's while you're grounded." She informed him.

Ryan shook his head. She couldn't be serious. "No way. You can't take Luke's away from me."

"You are to go to school and then come home or go with me to the Inn. That's it. Nowhere else until I see fit." Lorelai looked away and rolled her eyes where Ryan couldn't see. She really did sound like her mother, and she hated it.

"This sucks." He was mad about being grounded, but he was even more upset about not getting to go to Luke's. It was his favorite part about the week. He really liked Luke.

"Well what you did today sucks, and I need you to know that. Now if you decide you want to tell me the real reason why you hit that boy then please come talk to me, and we will discuss the severity of your punishment."

Ryan stood up in front of his mother, but didn't say anything. He wasn't going to.

"You can go upstairs to your room and do your homework."

"Fine." He turned to the stairs, but Lorelai stopped him. She wrapped her arms around him. Ryan reluctantly hugged her back.

"I love you, Ryan. Don't ever forget that."

"Okay."

"I'll be up to check on you later."

"Yeah to apply the bars to the window." He said quietly as he went up to his room and slammed the door.

Lorelai jumped slightly. She hated this. It seemed that they couldn't catch a break.

She had to figure out why Ryan got into a fight. She knew there was more to it than he was telling her.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	18. Rory's Thing to Tell

**Happy New Year! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 18: Rory's Thing to Tell**

Lorelai walked out of her closet after finally finding something to wear. They had just moved into their house, and she realized she should have done a better job of decluttering her closet. She never could find anything.

"Mommy."

She heard Ruby's tiny voice and then saw her little head peaking around the corner.

"Come in sweetie pie." She told her little girl.

"Mommy," Ruby wrapped her arms around her mom. Lorelai smiled. Ruby always knew when she needed a hug.

"Awe Ruby. You are just the sweetest." Lorelai lifted her up and sat her on the bed. She kissed her forehead. "You look beautiful this morning. Did Rory help you get dressed?"

Ruby nodded. "Yes. She wouldn't let me wear my Hello Kitty pajamas. That was my first choice." Ruby was wearing a cute yellow top and black leggings with furry boots Lorelai had bought her last year, but they had been too big.

Lorelai laughed. "Well Rory doesn't understand how comfortable pajamas are, but I think she did a very good job with your outfit. You look adorable."

"I do like yellow." Ruby hugged her mom again. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, baby. I'm fine." Lorelai lied. She was beyond stressed about Ryan, but she didn't want Ruby to worry about that.

"Mommy," Ruby put her hands on Lorelai's face. "You are not very good at hiding your sadness."

"Oh Ruby. I'm fine."

"You're sad because Ryan is mad at you." Ruby noted still holding Lorelai's face.

"Hey I'm not sad because your brother is mad at me. He's fourteen. He will get over it. And besides I'm mad at him too." Lorelai placed her hands onto Ruby's and moved them down. "You have nothing to worry about. You are six. You should have no worry in the world."

"But I don't like to see you sad." Ruby pouted, reminding Lorelai so much of herself.

"I'm not sad sweetheart." Lorelai kissed Ruby's forehead. "And I think you are the sweetest kid in the whole planet. And I'm the luckiest mom because you are my kid." Lorelai gave her a hug. "I have three great kids."

"Even Ryan?"

Lorelai nodded. "Even Ryan. He is a teenager Ruby."

"I don't think I like teenagers."

"Oh they aren't too bad." Lorelai smiled. "But promise me that you will stay my cute little girl. I want to keep you my baby forever."

Ruby hugged her mom. "Of course mommy. I like being your baby."

"I like that too." Lorelai smiled.

Ruby hopped off the bed and headed to the door. "Oh mommy. I thought you might want to know Ryan and Rory are downstairs whispering about keeping a secret." With that said Ruby walked out of her mom's room.

Lorelai loved that little girl, but she didn't want to ease drop on her kids. She didn't want to be that kind of mother.

* * *

"We can tell her." Rory whispered to her brother. "I don't like that you two are fighting, and it is because of me."

"It isn't because of you. You didn't tell me to punch Tristan in the face. I did that all on my own. No big deal. Mom's been mad at me before."

"You guys barely spoke last night." Rory was worried. She hated that her brother was in trouble.

"She'll get over it." Ryan stood up and rinsed out his cereal bowl. "She always does."

"But you're grounded."

"Yeah. So. I'm sure I'll do something else and she will ground me again." Ryan grabbed his books.

"Ryan, I'm sorry I got you into trouble."

"Rory. Stop stressing over it. I'll be fine. Again I repeat, this isn't your fault."

Lorelai didn't want to ease drop. She wasn't technically ease dropping. Her kids happened to be talking when she walked down the stairs. She realized that Rory had been involved. She was going to figure it out.

"Hey kids." She announced herself. Of course they stopped talking.

"Hey mom." Rory gave her a kiss on the cheek before walking back into her bedroom to get her things for school.

Ryan didn't speak.

"Hey Ryan."

"Hey." He said quietly with an eye roll.

"You know I am mad at you too." She told him as she poured herself a cup of coffee. "You giving me the silent treatment is not going to help matters. Trust me."

"I don't know what you want me to say." Ryan said honestly. "Have you decided how long I'm grounded for?"

"That depends. How about you tell me what really happened yesterday? What did Tristan do to make you so upset with him? There has to be a reason why you think he is a jerk." Lorelai hoped he would finally be honest with her.

Ryan thought about it. He looked into his sister's room. He just couldn't do it. "There is nothing else to tell you."

Lorelai sighed. "Fine. Have it your way. I will pick you up after detention today. What time is it over?"

"You don't have to do that. I'm perfectly capable of walking home. I've done it many times before."

Lorelai shook her head. "Not today. This is a part of your punishment."

"You're being so unfair." Ryan knew he sounded like a child.

"Hey," Lorelai touched his shoulder. "I need to know that you understand what you did was wrong."

"Yeah. I got it. No fighting." Ryan walked out of the kitchen. "Detention is over at 4. I'm going to the car."

Lorelai took a big gulp of her coffee. "I really need this in an IV." She said to herself. "Hey Rory," she said as she walked into her daughters' room.

"Yeah mom. I'm ready."

"Rory, if you knew what happened yesterday, you would tell me, right?" Lorelai asked. She knew Rory wasn't a liar.

"Um." Rory looked away from her mom.

"Rory."

"I don't know." She walked past her mom.

"Rory."

"Mom, this is between you and Ryan. Not me." She said more harshly than intended. "I'm going to go to the car."

Lorelai took another drink of her coffee. "Seriously an IV would be nice."

"I'm ready mommy." Ruby came around the corner with her backpack.

"Alright baby doll. Let's go." Lorelai took her hand and they walked out of the house. She hoped her kids had a much better day at school, and she hoped to make it through an entire day of work.

* * *

Lorelai was working the front desk at the Inn. Michel had the day off. "Lorelai," Mia said as she approached the desk. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. Everything is fine." Lorelai lied. She was getting good at lying.

"Lorelai Gilmore," Mia led her away from the desk and over to one of the couches. "No one is checking in right now. We will hear the phone if it rings."

"Okay."

"You were supposed to call me last night. How is Ryan?"

"Mad at me." Lorelai said sadly. "I feel like one of my kids has been mad at me ever since we moved here. I feel like I'm becoming my mother."

"Oh Lorelai, you are not becoming your mother." Mia hoped to reassure her.

"You don't know my mother, Mia. I feel like I sound just like her sometimes. I want to trust my kids."

"Lorelai you have two teenagers. That's not easy."

"I know. I never thought it was going to be easy." Maybe she had thought it would be easy. "I promised myself that I would treat my kids different than my parents treated me. I promised to tell them every day how much I loved them. I promised to trust them. I promised to listen to them. I made myself so many promised, but I feel like I am breaking all of those promises."

"Oh Lorelai."

"I feel like I'm failing."

"You are not failing. I don't know how many times I have to tell you that." Mia smiled at Lorelai. She didn't know what it was about the girl, but she loved her like a daughter, almost from the moment she met her. "Parenthood is all about uncertainty. I remember I had all kind of expectations of how I was going to do things as a mother. That goes out of the window as soon as your kid becomes a teenager. Actually it goes out the window the minute they are born."

"Well my mom had a lot of say when they were born. We did everything her way. I tried my way. The I love yous and hugs and kisses. I always did that. But they were so immersed in her world. That world that I hate so much." Lorelai looked up at Mia. "This is the first time in my life that things are on my terms. I'm not following some schedule that my mom has set out for me. I'm not worried about pleasing her or my dad. And it feels great. But then I feel like I'm messing things up with my kids. Maybe they needed that lifestyle."

"No." Mia shook her head. "This is exactly what they need. You have to trust me on that."

"They are keeping things from me, and I don't know what to do about it."

"You figure it out." Mia told her. "You are a smart young woman. You aren't going to let your kids pull the wool over your eyes. You are going to figure out what's going on, and if I know you like I think you do, you are going to fix it. You can fix it."

Lorelai smiled. "I love that you have so much faith in me. I wish I had that same confidence."

"You should be confident in yourself, Lorelai. You've got this." Mia hugged her. "You've got this. Say it."

"You've got this." Lorelai joked. Mia gave her a look. "I've got this."

"Good. I'm glad you finally realize that."

"Thank you for believing in me. I thinks that's all I've ever needed in my life." Lorelai gave her a hug. Mia always had a way of making her feel better.

* * *

Ryan was standing at his locker getting his books. "Hey jackass." Some kid slammed the door shut.

"What the hell?"

"Just so you know when Tristan gets back to school he is going to kick your ass." The kid walked away.

Ryan shook his head. "Whatever." He didn't care if Tristan wanted to fight him. All he knew was that he wasn't going to get into another fight. His mom would literally kill him if he got into any more trouble. He preferred to live.

"What was that?" Jess asked. He had seen the exchange take place.

"One of Tristan's jerky friends." Ryan shrugged. "No big deal."

"Oh okay. Are you coming to Luke's today?" Jess asked, knowing it was his day to work.

"Yeah." Ryan told him. He didn't care what his mom said. She couldn't take Luke's away from him.

* * *

"So your mom is pretty mad?" Lane asked Rory as they walked down the hallway.

Rory nodded. "Yeah."

"I think you should tell her the truth. She is going to find out eventually. I think she could help."

Rory shook her head. "It's not a big deal. Maybe the bullying will stop now that Ryan punched Tristan."

"Yeah. Maybe." Lane wasn't convinced.

* * *

That afternoon Lorelai found herself in front of the school waiting on Ryan. Sookie was picking Ruby up from school when she picked up Davey.

She had been waiting for Ryan for about five minutes. She knew that detention should be over. She sighed and got out of her vehicle and walked into the school. She wasn't sure where the detention room would be.

"Ms. Gilmore." Principal Max Medina said as he rounded the corner and saw her peeking into classrooms.

"Principal Medina."

"You can call me Max."

"Okay. Principal Max." Lorelai chuckled.

"Are you looking for something?"

"Someone." She corrected. "My son. He was supposed to be waiting on me."

"Oh Ryan has already left."

"What? Detention was over at four." Lorelai had written it down. She knew it was supposed to be over at four.

Max shook his head. "No. It was over at 3:45."

"I thought detention was an hour. When I was a kid it was always an hour, and it was always the longest hour of my life. Because I really wanted to be at home watching TV and vegging out on junk food. But no the school had to put detention after school, and every time I got home my mom wouldn't let me watch television. She would always say." In her best impression of her mother. "Lorelai, you are not to watch television. You had detention. Girls who get detention do not get to watch television." Lorelai smiled.

Max laughed. "Your mother sounds British."

"She's not." Lorelai told him.

"You sure do know how to rant."

"Oh yes. I can rant with the best of them. So what kind of school are you running here? Your detention should be an hour."

"It is an hour. It started at 2:45."

"Ryan told me it ended at 4."

"Ryan lied to you." He told her bluntly.

"Thanks." Lorelai sighed. "I don't know what I'm going to do with him."

"Ryan is a good kid."

"You know people keep saying that, but he keeps proving otherwise." Lorelai turned to walk away.

"Ms. Gilmore."

Lorelai turned to look at him. "Lorelai. You can call me Lorelai. Now if you will excuse me I've got to go find my son." Lorelai knew exactly where he was, and she was going to kill him.

Max watched her go. She was a beautiful woman.

* * *

Lorelai marched into the Diner. Luke was behind the counter. "Hey." He greeted her not realizing she was mad.

"Where is he?"

"He? Who he?"

"Don't play dumb with me. Where's Ryan?"

"Oh he is in the back with Jess. What's wrong? Why are you so upset?" Luke finally realized she was mad.

"Ryan," She yells.

"Lorelai," Luke stops her. "What's going on?"

"Ryan."

Ryan comes out of the back. He knew he was in trouble.

"I went to school to pick you up, but to my surprise you were missing."

"Were you not supposed to be here?" Luke asked.

"No he wasn't." Lorelai answered for him. "Ryan is grounded for fighting yesterday."

"You got into a fight?" Luke didn't know.

"Yes he did." Lorelai answered for him again. "I'm surprised Jess didn't tell you."

"Jess never tells me anything."

Lorelai looked at Ryan. "We are going home."

"Mom, you have to understand why I did it."

Lorelai looked at him.

"I didn't think it was fair that you said I couldn't come to Luke's. I like working here."

"I know that, but you don't get to be rewarded for bad behavior."

"I'm sorry." Ryan apologized.

"Go wait for me in the car." Lorelai touched his shoulder.

"Fine." Ryan mumbled and walked towards the door.

"And Ryan." Luke stopped him. "If your mom says you can't come then you can't come."

"Okay."

"Don't drive away." Lorelai warned him.

"I'm sorry." Luke immediately apologized. "I didn't know he didn't have permission to be here. I never would have let him work. You have to believe me."

"I do believe you." Lorelai smiled at him. "I know this was Ryan's doing. He is just trying to drive me crazy."

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah there is." She had a plan.

* * *

Luke walked up to his apartment to find Jess watching television. Luke turned it off.

"Hey why did you do that?"

"Hey why didn't you tell me that Ryan got into a fight yesterday?"

Jess shrugged. "I didn't know I had to tell you."

"He is your best friend. I feel like it should have come up." Luke sat beside him. "Were you involved?"

"No. Why do you automatically assume that I'd be involved?" Jess immediately defended himself.

"I'm not accusing you of anything." Luke admitted. "I think you should have told me about it. I wish you would have told me about it. Did you see it? Were you there?"

Jess nodded.

"What happened?"

"He hit this guy named Tristan."

"Why?" Luke hoped Jess would be honest with him.

"I don't know."

"You were there." Luke gave him a look.

Jess knew that Rory and Ryan didn't want anyone to know the truth. He didn't agree with them, but he didn't want to be the one to tell their secret.

"Jess." Luke wanted an answer.

"He just hit him. That's all I know."

Luke knew that he was lying. "You need to tell me what really happened. Lorelai is worried about her kids."

"I don't know."

"You do know." Luke stood up. "And until you tell me you are to come home right after school."

"What?" Jess stood up. He was shocked. "You can't do that. You can't ground me. I didn't do anything wrong."

"Yes you did. You are lying to me." Luke pointed at him. "You aren't supposed to lie to me. I know you know why Ryan got into fight."

"I don't know."

"Yes you do."

"Uncle Luke?" Jess pleaded.

Luke shook his head. "I'm not going to change my mind. You can't keep things from me."

"This isn't my thing."

"But you agree that it is a thing."

Jess dropped his head back in frustration. "Uncle Luke, this is so unfair."

"No TV either."

"Seriously. I didn't do anything wrong."

"Depends on your perspective and at the moment mine is the only one that matters."

"This is Rory's thing to tell." Jess blurted out before he thought about it.

"Rory?" Luke questioned.

"I meant Ryan." Jess tried to cover his tracks.

"But you said Rory."

"It doesn't matter what I said. I shouldn't be in trouble for this." Jess stomped out of the room and into his room, throwing himself on the bed. He was so mad at his uncle. He was being so unfair.

Luke grabbed the phone and stepped outside into the hall. He dialed Lorelai's number, surprising himself that he had already memorized it.

"Hello," she answered.

"Hey Lorelai, its Luke." Luke said. "Jess knows something, and I think I know how to get it out of him."

Lorelai looked relieved.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	19. It Helps to know People

**Thanks again for all the support. I know some people do not want anything with Max to happen. All I can say is that I'm huge Lorelai and Luke fan, but I have always felt like the best part of them was the chase and that it wasn't easy for them to get together. But they always loved each other. Anyways enough with the rambling. Just have faith in me and don't stop reading!**

 **I hope you enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 19: It Helps to know People**

"Hey." Lorelai said as she walked into the diner. "Is Jess still here?"

Luke nodded. "Yeah. Are you ready to do this?"

"Yep. It was your idea. I just hope it works."

"Me too." Luke guided her upstairs to his apartment. "Jess." He called out before entering.

"Uncle Luke." Jess was finishing a bowl of cereal. He looked at the door to see Lorelai. "Hey. What is she doing here?"

Luke closed the door behind them and locked it.

"What's going on?" Jess was growing even more confused and frustrated at his uncle.

"Jess, we are not leaving this apartment until you tell us the truth."

Jess rolled his eyes. This was beyond ridiculous. "You have a diner to run."

"Caesar can handle it for a while. I'm hoping that you will be honest with us and this won't take too long. I don't want you to miss school."

"Uncle Luke, I already told you everything you know."

"What does Rory have to do with the fight?" Lorelai asked.

"I misspoke."

"You didn't." Luke told him. "I know you didn't, and I also know that you know the truth."

Jess sighed. He didn't know what to do, but he was tired of seeing the disappointed look on his uncle's face.

"Jess, I just need to know that my kids are okay. I feel like something else is going on, and if you know what that is then I need you to tell me."

Jess looked at his uncle and then back at Lorelai. "Will you promise not to tell them that I told you?" Jess asked innocently. He hadn't had too many friends since moving to Stars Hollow, and he didn't want to lose the ones he finally had.

"I won't mention your name, but I have to know what's going on." Lorelai promised him.

"And you really won't let me leave until I tell you. You would even risk me missing school?" Jess asked his uncle.

"I don't think that you want to test me." Luke told him honestly.

"Tristan, the guy Ryan hit, has been bullying Rory since she started school." Jess knew that he couldn't hid it from them any longer.

"What?" Lorelai was filled with a mix of emotions. "My poor baby." She couldn't believe Rory wouldn't tell her about it.

"He really is a jerk. He was messing with Rory again, and Ryan got mad and hit him."

"Tristan is the kid that got you into trouble last year." Luke remembered. Jess nodded. "He is that rich kid from Hartford."

"He is from Hartford?" Lorelai asked.

"Yeah."

"What's his last name?" She thought she might know him. Her parents knew everyone who was anyone in Hartford.

"I think it is Dugray." Jess told her.

Lorelai smiled. "I do know his parents."

"Seriously."

"Yeah. I actually know his mother pretty well. I was in charge of a couple of her parties. I used to hear the guests talk about her unruly son. I guess they were right."

"What are you going to do?" Luke asked.

"My job as a mother. I'm going to take care of this." She looked at Jess. "Thank you for telling us the truth." She gave him a hug. "I won't ever tell Rory or Ryan that you told me anything. In fact, I am not sure that I am going to tell them that I know." She looked at Luke. "Thank you." She gave him a hug.

"Let me know how it goes."

"I will." She walked out of the apartment.

Luke focused his attention on Jess. "Thank you."

"I can't believe you played so dirty."

"That's my job."

"So am I still grounded?"

"No. But Jess you have to remember that you can tell me anything."

"I know that. I just didn't think that this was my thing to tell."

"I know you think you are protecting your friends, but you aren't." Luke told him. "If this guy is as big a jerk as you say that he is then he could have hurt Rory, and he could hurt Ryan. That's nothing to play around with."

"I know. I understand."

"Good. Now get to class." Luke ruffled Jess's hair. Jess grumbled then grabbed his things and walked out of the apartment.

Luke smirked. That had been easier than he had expected. He was glad that he could help Lorelai and the kids.

* * *

"There he is." Tristan said when he found Ryan coming out of the bathroom.

Ryan let out a slight chuckle when he saw Tristan's face. He had definitely broken his nose.

"Go away."

"No way. I can't let you get away with breaking my nose. It is your turn. I'm going to kick your ass." Tristan whispered in Ryan's ear.

"Whatever, Tristan." Ryan tried to walk away.

"I'm not kidding." Tristan shoved him a little. "Tomorrow after school. Get ready. Because it is going down." Tristan walked away and Ryan rolled his eyes.

"What was that about?" Rory asked after seeing what happened with Tristan.

"Don't worry about it, Rory."

"Is he going to fight you?" Rory asked.

"It doesn't matter. I'm not going to fight back. Mom will kill me." Ryan knew that was true. He didn't want her to become any madder at him.

"But you can't let him break your nose."

"Rory." Ryan touched her shoulder. "Tristan isn't going to break my nose."

"How do you know that?"

"Because he is all talk. That pretty boy is not going to hurt me. Trust me."

Rory sighed. She couldn't believe the mess she had gotten herself into. She should have told her mom about the bullying when it started. All of this could have been avoided. She knew it was all her fault.

Ryan walked down the hall. He saw Jess and waved. Jess waved back but turned and walked away. Ryan found that to be incredibly out of character for Jess but decided not to worry about it.

* * *

Later that afternoon, Lorelai, Ryan, and Ruby walked into their house. Rory was sitting at the kitchen table, already working on her homework. "Hey Ruby, sweetie, I'm going to turn some cartoons on for you, okay."

"Okay, mommy." Ruby smiled as she bounced her way to the couch.

Ryan turned towards the stairs. "Wait a minute." Lorelai stopped him. "Will you go into the kitchen with your sister, please?"

"Do I have a choice?"

Lorelai shook her head. "Nope."

"Of course not." Ryan sighed and walked into the kitchen.

Lorelai rolled her eyes and followed Ryan into the kitchen.

"Hey mom." Rory looked up from her work.

"Hey sweetie." Lorelai kissed her forehead and took a seat next to Rory. She motioned for Ryan to do the same.

"What's wrong?" Rory asked. She was nervous. She wondered if Ryan got into trouble again.

"I didn't get into any trouble today." Ryan noted.

"I know." Lorelai looked him. She hadn't told them that she knew about the bullying. She hoped that they would tell her. They had always been able to talk to her before, and she hated that they didn't come to her this time.

"Well what kind of lecture are you going to give us?" Ryan asked, in a tone that Lorelai was growing tired of.

"What kind of lecture do you need?" Lorelai matched his tone.

Ryan shrugged.

"I was just thinking how hard school was for me when I was your age. Which by the way wasn't too long ago." She was only thirty years old. Something she often forgot. "I had a way of finding trouble or so that was what my mother always said."

"Is this a trip down memory lane?" Ryan quipped.

"Yes. I'm in the mood for a good trip." Lorelai smiled and focused her attention on Rory. "When I was thirteen there was this new girl named Holly at my school. She decided right way that she didn't like me. I think it was because I talked too much or that I was a Gilmore. My father had more money than her father. It was always a competition. That was one of the things I wanted to get you kids away from. I don't want you to grow up like that." Lorelai smiled at her kids. She wanted them to have a normal childhood and become their own selves. "Anyways, I'm moving off topic. Holly hated me so much that she started bullying me."

Lorelai could see the look on Rory's face when she said the word bullying.

"She teased me every day for over a month, and I never said anything to my parents or teachers. Finally, I got so tired of it that I started a rumor about her not wearing any underwear. She immediately went to the principal, and I was the one that ended up in detention and in trouble with my parents for starting a crude rumor. That's not the Gilmore way." Lorelai mimicked her mother. "When I tried to tell them the truth, they thought I was making it up."

Both Ryan and Rory shared stares. Ryan knew his sister was feeling guilty, but he also had a feeling his mom was up to something. "That really happened?" Ryan asked.

Lorelai nodded. "Yes. I learned a valuable lesson throughout all of that. It is always a good idea to tell the truth. Right, Rory."

"Mom." Rory was about to say something.

"That was a great story, mom. It taught us a lot." Ryan interrupted his sister. "I know you still want to know what happened with the fight. I've already told you everything you need to know."

"So you've said." Lorelai said frustrated. "I want you guys to know that you can always trust me. Always. No matter what. We are in this together."

"We know that." Ryan stood up. "I've got to get to my homework."

"Yeah I should get back to mine too." Rory pointed to her books.

"Okay." Lorelai took the hint. She was so confused. Why wouldn't Rory tell her about the bullying? It didn't make sense to her. But it didn't matter because Lorelai had taken care of everything. Like she always did.

* * *

The next morning Rory, Ryan, and Jess were walking down the hall when they saw Tristan cleaning out his locker. He had two older men helping him. They probably worked for his parents.

"What's going on?" Ryan was the first to talk. "Is he getting another locker?"

Jess smiled. He had a feeling that Lorelai Gilmore had something to do with this.

Tristan finished packing his things and closed his locker door. "Goodbye, Mary." He told Rory.

"Where are you going?"

"Boarding school. It seems you are a snitch." He looked at Ryan, but Ryan didn't know what he was talking about.

"We didn't say anything."

"Well someone did." Tristan pushed past them. "We could have had something, Mary."

"Not even in your dreams." Rory said proudly. She was really relieved that he was gone. If he was really gone.

"I didn't tell anyone." Ryan told them. "Did you say anything?" He asked Rory.

"No." She shook her head. "You would have known if I had said something."

Jess was being extremely quiet.

"Do you know something?"

"Um. No." Jess lied.

Jess turned to walk away. Ryan and Rory went to follow him, but were shocked to see their mom going into the principal's office.

"Mom." Ryan said.

The bell rang.

"We've got to go." Rory nudged him.

"But mom is here."

"Well hopefully no one is in trouble."

"Don't you think this is weird?" Ryan wondered. "Do you think mom got Tristan expelled? How did she find out?"

Rory just stood there. "I don't know. I'm just glad he is gone. I feel like I can finally start to enjoy this school."

"Yeah me too. What about Jess? I think he knows something."

"I say we leave it alone. If mom knows something, she will tell us, and if Jess told her I don't think he did it to be a jerk. He probably thought he was helping."

"So we say nothing?" He asked.

"We say nothing."

"Okay." Ryan agreed, but he was still curious about why his mom was at the school.

* * *

"Thanks for meeting with me again Ms…Lorelai." He changed the Gilmore when he saw the look on her face.

"I'm just glad to know that my kids aren't in trouble."

"No. The exact opposite actually. The boy your son hit, Tristan Dugray, has been taken out of Stars Hollow High by his mother. It seems she found out that Tristan was bullying your daughter Rory."

"Really?" Lorelai already knew all of this.

"Yes. But I have a feeling you already knew that. She said she spoke to you about it."

Lorelai smiled, innocently.

"I promise you that we had no idea that Rory was being bullied. Bullying is not tolerated at this school. I assure you that we would have taken care of it had we known."

"Don't feel bad Mr. Medina. I didn't know about it either. Rory usually tells me everything, but she didn't tell me this." Lorelai still hated that. "Someone finally told me about it, and I realized that I knew Tristan's mother. She once told me that if I ever needed anything all I had to do was ask. Sometimes it helps to know people. I should probably thank my mother, but I won't."

"So you asked her to send him to boarding school?"

"Oh no. That was just an added bonus." Lorelai couldn't stop smiling.

"Well again I wanted to have you in here to apologize about the whole thing. It hasn't been confirmed but I'm guessing that is why Ryan got into a fight with him."

"Yeah. It most definitely was." Lorelai was relieved.

"I plan on bringing Ryan in later to let him know that he is off the hook."

"Don't do that." Lorelai said quickly. "I mean you can shorten his punishment but don't let him off of the hook. He did punch someone in the face, even if it was to defend his sister. I don't want him to think he can fight, ever. We are more of words people in our family."

"I can tell." Max smiled at her. "I'll take a week off."

"That works for me."

"I should probably get back to work."

"Thank you for coming." Max stood up and extended his hand.

She shook it. "At least I'm not leaving with one of my children this time."

"I hope I never have to call you back in for anything but good."

"Me too. Thank you Mr. Medina…"

"Again. You can call me Max."

"Max." Lorelai smiled. He was a very nice man and seemed like a pretty good principal.

* * *

At the end of the day, Lorelai and Rory were waiting outside of Stars Hollow High for Ryan to get out of detention.

"Why do I have to be here?" Rory asked.

"Because I want you to be here." Lorelai wrapped her arms around her daughter.

"Mom." Rory looked up at her. "Why were you at school today?"

Lorelai was about to say something when Ryan walked out of school. "Why is she here?" He pointed at Rory.

"I wanted to talk to the two of you." She pointed to some benches and the kids followed her.

"What's wrong?" Ryan asked.

"Does this have to do with why you were at school today?" Rory asked again.

Lorelai looked at both of them. "I love you both very much, and the two of you have to trust me. You have to know that you can tell me anything. I can't be a cool mom if you guys shut me out and lie to me."

Rory looked at Ryan.

"I know that you were being bullied." She told Rory.

"Who told you?" She had a feeling it was Jess.

"That's not important. I think the better question is why you didn't tell me?"

"I didn't want you to worry about me. I didn't want you to think that you had made a mistake moving us here. I thought I could figure it out all on my own." Rory was finally honest with her mom.

"Hon, we could have figured it out together." She looked at Ryan. "And you wouldn't have gotten into a fight with the jerk."

"He was a total jerk."

"Mom, did you get him kicked out of school?" Ryan asked.

Lorelai shook her head. "I know his mother. I could have taken care of this for you as soon as it started, and it wouldn't have gotten worse. Always know that I have your back. And I know you don't want me to worry, but that is part of my job description. I'm always going to worry about you no matter what is happening."

"I know, mom. I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Lorelai hugged her. "I love you, kiddo."

"I love you too, mom."

Lorelai looked at Ryan. "I love you too."

"I know." Ryan hugged his mom.

"Let's go home." Lorelai grabbed both of their arms.

"So mom," Ryan spoke. "Since I was protecting my sister am I still grounded?" He asked hopefully.

"You are spending the weekend at home with me. Actually we are all spending the weekend at home."

Both kids made a face.

"I want to keep all of my babies close for the next few days." Lorelai admitted. "Fighting is never the answer, even if you were protecting your sister. I don't ever want to have to pick you up from school or anywhere for that matter because you were fighting. Is that understood?"

Ryan nodded. "I got it. No fighting. Ever."

Lorelai smiled slightly. "Good. Iwill tell Luke that you can start back at the diner next week."

"Really?" Ryan was so excited.

"Yes. But no lying, fighting, or keeping things from me. That goes for both of you."

"Got it." They both said.

Lorelai was relieved. Everything was going to be okay.

* * *

 **I hope you all enjoyed. Let me know what you thought!**


	20. Every Party Needs a Donkey

**Thanks for the support! I hope you enjoy this chapter. The Birthday arc will be a few chapters!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 20: Every Party Needs a Donkey**

A few weeks had passed in Stars Hollow and things were finally settling down for the Gilmore's. Lorelai was relieved that she hadn't been called down to the school and her kids seemed to be getting along. She was even more excited because Ryan and Rory were about to have a birthday. Lorelai always loved birthdays, and she always tried to make them extra special. Although, she had never gotten to throw them a party like she really wanted to. Her mother always threw them a party with all of her friends. To show them off. Lorelai hated it, but never managed to find her voice to tell her mother to stop.

However, this year was different. Lorelai could do whatever she wanted to, and she had a lot of plans running through her mind. It was going to be the best birthday the twins had ever had.

"A scavenger hunt?" Ryan questioned as he followed his mom and sisters through Stars Hollow. "We're not six."

"I am." Ruby admitted. "I think it would be fun."

"Yeah me too." Rory chimed in.

"See you're out voted." Lorelai ruffled his hair.

"I'm always out voted." Ryan reminded them. "Always." He said dramatically.

"Well what do you want to do for your birthday?" Lorelai asked. "I want this one to be fun."

"We don't have to go to grandma's?" Ryan asked.

"That's correct."

"Then I don't care what we do." Ryan had always hated the parties that his grandmother had thrown. They were always boring, and they were never about Ryan or Rory.

"Can we have an ice cream bar?" Rory asked. "And a piñata. I've always wanted a piñata."

"We had a piñata once." Ryan reminded her.

"Yeah I know. But it was just us. I think it would be fun if there were a lot of people there to hit it."

"You can have whatever you want." Lorelai told her. "I want you both to make a list of what you would like. We don't have very long to plan since it is this weekend."

They finally made their way into the diner. "Sit anywhere?" She asked Luke.

"Sit anywhere. I'll be right with you." He yelled as he walked into the back.

"Can we invite Luke?" Ryan asked.

Lorelai smiled. "Sure. You can invite whoever you want to invite."

"Can I invite Davey?" Ruby asked.

"Of course."

"This isn't your party." Ryan let her know.

"I know that, meanie. But I can still invite my boyfriend."

"Boyfriend?" Lorelai looked at her daughter. She was way too young to think boys were anything but yucky.

Ruby nodded. "Yes we decided. We are a perfect fit."

"Oh wow mom. Maybe you will be planning a wedding soon." Rory joked.

"You aren't helping." Lorelai nudged her. "At least I know I will like the in-laws." She joked.

"What can I get ya?" Luke asked.

"Do you want to come to our birthday party, Luke?" Rory asked.

"Really." Luke was surprised. "When is the party?"

"Saturday." Ryan answered.

"We will be fifteen." Rory told him. "We want you and Jess to come."

"I've already invited Jess." Ryan told them.

"We will be there."

"It is going to be at the house." Lorelai told him. "Official invitation to come. Hopefully the cops won't be called."

"You're gonna get that wild?" Luke questioned.

"If we want to then we can. That is the beauty of it all. This year we can do whatever we want." Lorelai was extremely excited.

"Well I'll be there. Now what can I get ya?"

"I'll have a coffee and pancakes."

"Pancakes with chocolate chips." Rory said.

"Me too."

"Me too." Ryan added after Ruby.

"That was easy. Be right back."

"Mom, can I go upstairs and hangout with Jess?" Ryan asked.

"Sure but don't stay up there too long. Your pancakes will be ready."

"Okay." Ryan ran off.

Babette and Ms. Patty walked into the diner. They both waved at the girls and then found an open seat.

"Can I go talk to Babette?" Ruby asked. She loved Babette and Ms. Patty.

"Go ahead."

Ruby ran off and was greeted by her favorite ladies.

"So mom." Rory looked at Lorelai.

"Yeah kid."

"Are we inviting dad to our party?"

Lorelai gulped. She knew that he wouldn't come. "If you want to invite him then sure. That would be great."

"You know he won't come." Rory surprised her mom.

"You don't know that."

"Mom, I can count on one hand how many birthdays dad has made over the years. I don't have high expectations."

"Then why did you want to invite him?"

Lorelai could see the sadness fill her daughter's eyes. She hated that Christopher was always hurting her children.

"For Ryan. He misses dad."

"I know, sweets. Do you miss your dad?"

Rory took a moment to think about it. "I feel bad for feeling this way, but no. I have you. You are all I'll ever need."

Lorelai smiled slightly. She wished that Christopher had been a better father. She married him so that he could be a part of their kids' lives, and he chose not to.

Lorelai reached her hand across the table. "Well you are always going to be stuck with me no matter what. Don't ever try to get rid of me. Because it won't work. I'll be with you until the end and even after."

Rory smiled. "You're the best, mom."

"I hope you always feel that way."

"Alright. I've got pancakes galore." Luke sat the plates down. "Should I take these over to the little one?" He pointed to Ruby who was in-between Babette and Patty. They were all laughing and singing.

"I don't think we could pull her away if we tried." Lorelai told him as she took a bite of her pancakes.

Luke grabbed the plate and took it to Ruby. He walked back to Lorelai's table, refilling her coffee. "Where's Ryan?"

"Upstairs with Jess."

"I'll go get them." Rory said, but the boys walked downstairs. "Oh good."

"What were you two up to?" Luke asked.

"Nothing." Jess said. "I'm going to get to school."

"Already." Luke was confused. Jess never went to school early.

"Yeah and I'm going to go with him." Ryan said as he took one bite of his pancakes.

Before they could say anything else, the two boys were gone.

Lorelai looked at Luke. "That was weird."

"Yeah. But I've learned it is better not to ask questions." He walked away.

"Do you know what that was about?" Lorelai asked Rory.

"Not a clue."

"Luke's right. Better not to ask questions." Things were going so well that she didn't want to ruin them.

* * *

In front of Stars Hollow High, Jess and Ryan were looking at a letter. "Your Uncle Luke doesn't know about this?" Ryan asked.

Jess shook his head. "Nope. I haven't really talked to my mom sense moving here. Uncle Luke thought it was for the best if she kept her distance."

"But she wrote you this letter. She wants to see you."

Jess nodded.

"Do you want to see her?"

"I don't know." Jess shrugged. "She's my mom."

"Yeah but that doesn't mean anything." Ryan knew all too well because of his dad. "Maybe you should talk to your Uncle Luke about it. He could take you to Hartford."

"No." Jess shook his head. "They aren't close. I don't think my Uncle Luke would want me to see her."

"So you aren't going to see her." Ryan was confused.

"She won't be here until next week. I have some time to think about it." Jess shoved the letter into his pocket.

"Okay."

Jess was worried. He knew he should talk to his uncle about the letter, but his mom asked him not to. He didn't want to make her upset. The truth was that he did miss her. She was his mom. He would always love her.

* * *

Lorelai and Sookie walked into her house carrying several bags. "I can't believe how much stuff you got."

"That was the best party store I have ever been too. I am so glad you told me about it." Lorelai sat her stuff on the table. "The kids are going to love all of these party favors."

"You are really excited." Sookie noticed.

Lorelai smiled happily. "Oh I am. I have waited for this since the kids were born. I'm so happy that they don't have to worry about wearing a fancy outfit and being around all those snobs." Lorelai really was relieved. "I hated it for them every year and finally I get to give them the party that they deserve."

"They are going to love the piñata."

Lorelai nodded. "I think it is my favorite." She held up the brightly colored piñata. "It's perfect."

Before she could continue going through all of the things she bought, the house phone rang.

"Let me get that." She searched for the phone and found it on the couch. "Hello."

"Lorelai."

Lorelai's heart sank at the sound of the voice on the other end of the phone.

"Lorelai. Are you there?" Her mother's voice asked.

Lorelai sighed loudly. Oh great, she thought to herself. "Yes. Mom. Hi."

Sookie came out of the kitchen and made a face.

"I'm glad I caught you. I was beginning to plan the party for the twins."

"No." Lorelai said quickly.

"Excuse me." Emily said surprisingly.

"You do not have to plan a party for the kids. I have it taken care of."

"I always throw them a party." Emily reminded her.

"Not this year." Lorelai was not going to back down. "We already have plans."

"You can't do that."

"Yes I can."

Emily sighed. "So I don't even get to see my grandchildren on their birthday."

"You can come to the birthday party that I am having for them."

Emily thought about it for a moment. "Could we see them the day after?"

"You want me to bring them to Hartford."

"Yes. We could all have lunch."

Lorelai thought about it. She wanted to say no, but she didn't want to keep her kids away from her parents forever. "Okay. We will come have lunch with you. But mom no big expensive presents. They don't need it."

"But we can get them something, right?" Emily asked.

"Of course you can. They both love to read. Maybe a nice book."

"Okay Lorelai. We will see you all around 12 on Sunday. Goodbye, Lorelai." Emily hung up the phone.

Lorelai hung up the phone and let out a growl.

"You okay?"

"That woman really thought that she was throwing the kids a birthday party. She really has lost her mind."

"Are you going to see her?" Sookie asked, hearing part of the conversation.

"We are going to have lunch with her on Sunday." Lorelai sat down next to her best friend. "I don't know how she can think that she has done nothing wrong over the years." Lorelai sighed. "But it is okay because she is not throwing them one of her snooty parties. This year is going to be about my kids and what's best for them."

"Pin the tail on the donkey." Sookie held the game up.

"Yes. Every good party needs a donkey." Lorelai smiled. This was going to be the best birthday party her kids had ever had. She was going to make sure of it.

* * *

Emily walked into Richard's study. "Did you talk to Lorelai?"

"Yes, I did."

"Did she say we could throw them a birthday party?"

"Yes." Emily smiled. "But it will have to be on Sunday."

"Well that's great." Richard smiled at his wife. "I'm looking forward to seeing them all.

"Yes. Me too." Emily wasn't going to let Lorelai take away everything she loved to do. She had a reputation to uphold.

* * *

 **As always, let me know what you thought!**


	21. Pin the Tail on the Donkey

**As always I am so thankful for all the people who are reading this story. It makes me so happy to know people like the story. Let me know if there is something that you want to see in future chapters.**

 **I hope you all enjoy the birthday party.**

 **P.S. the first part is all Amy and Dan, not me!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 21: Pin the Tail on the Donkey**

"Mom, what are we doing?" Ryan said as Lorelai led him down the stairs. "It's the middle of the night. Have you lost your mind?" He whispered.

"That's what the shrink keeps saying." Lorelai giggled as she opened Rory's and Ruby's bedroom door.

"Where's Ruby?" Ryan whispered.

"My room of course." Lorelai led him to Rory's bed. She got on one side and he got on the other side.

"Hey." Rory said as she woke up to see her mother and brother. She was expecting them.

Lorelai smiled at her two precious angels. "I can't believe how fast the two of you are growing up."

"Really?" Rory asked.

"Feels slow." Ryan added.

"Trust me," Lorelai touched Rory's nose. "It's fast. What do you two think of life so far?"

"I think it's pretty good." Rory answered.

Ryan didn't say anything.

"What about you little boy?" Lorelai reached over and touched his arm.

"It's not so bad." That was true. His mom had given him a pretty good life.

"Any complaints?"

"I'd like that whole humidity thing to go away."

"Yeah, mom. Can you fix that for us?" Ryan asked.

"All right. I'll work on that."

"So do we look older?" Rory asked.

"You definitely do." Ryan told her.

"I was asking mom." Rory gave him a look.

"Oh yeah." Lorelai started. "You guys walk into Denny's before 5, you've got yourself a discount."

"Awesome." Ryan said.

"Good deal." Rory added.

"So do you two know what I think?"

"What?"

"I think that I got really lucky. You two are really great, cool kids, and the best friends a girl could have."

"Right back at ya." Rory gave her mom a kiss on the forehead.

"You're not so bad." Ryan said. He loved giving his mom a hard time.

"And it's so hard to believe that at exactly this time many moons ago, I was lying in exactly the same position…"

"Oh boy." Rory said.

"Here we go." Ryan added.

She did this every year. It was their tradition.

"Only I had a huge, fat stomach and big fat ankles and I was swearing like a sailor…" Lorelai continued.

"On leave."

"On leave…right! And there I was…"

"In labor." Ryan helped her out.

"And while some have called it the most meaningful experience of your life, to me it something more akin to doing the splits on a crate of dynamite."

"I wonder if the Waltons ever did this." Rory thought.

"No way." Ryan shook his head.

"And I was screaming and swearing and being surrounded as I was by a hundred prominent doctors, assumed there was an actual use for the cup of ice chips they gave me."

"There wasn't."

"But pelting the nurses sure was fun."

"I love you, mom." Rory told her.

"Yeah I love you too, mom." Ryan smiled at his mother.

"Shh you two. I'm getting to the part where he sees one of your heads. Lucky I was having twins." Lorelai continued as her two kids listened to her explain their birth like she did every year. They were happy to call it their tradition.

* * *

Rory and Ryan walked into Luke's. "I don't want to go to grandmas." Ryan told his sister.

"I guess you don't have to go." Rory thought, but she was excited about it. She really wanted to see their grandpa. She missed him.

"No I have to go." Ryan grumbled as they walked to the counter.

"Wrong table." Luke said as he walked out of the back.

"What?"

"When did you start reserving seats?" Rory asked.

He pointed to a table with balloons. "Since the coffee cake I baked for the two of you is over there with the balloons I blew up."

"You made us coffee cake?" Ryan asked.

"Yep." Luke pointed and the kids went to the table.

"Thanks, Luke."

"Yeah. Thanks. Luke. You have the best service in town." Rory gave him a hug.

Luke was taken by surprise. "Just don't tell everybody. I'm not going to do this for all my customers." Luke walked away.

"We are special." Rory thought.

"Yep. We're special." Ryan looked at the balloons. "That was really nice of him."

"Yeah it was pretty cool."

"You think dad is going to call?" Ryan asked his sister.

She shrugged. "Maybe he will."

"He probably doesn't even realize that it is our birthday." Ryan had that feeling. He took a bite of the coffee cake. "This is pretty good. Luke barely knows us, and he has done more for us than dad ever has."

"Dad has gotten us presents before."

"Yeah that mom or his assistant picked out."

"Well let's not worry about him. It is our birthday. It is supposed to be a good day." Rory wanted them both to have fun.

Ryan nodded. "Yeah I know."

"And I think mom sent him an invitation."

"Yeah. Like you said. Let's not talk about it."

Rory took the hint. She felt bad for her brother when it came to their dad. She never really needed him, but Ryan did. She knew it hurt him when their dad didn't call or come around. She wanted to fix it, but she knew that she couldn't.

"Rory," Lane ran into the diner.

"Hey Lane." Rory smiled. "What's wrong?"

"I can come." Lane was thrilled. "I get to come to your party."

"Your mom said yes." Rory was surprised.

"Yes. I can't believe it. She said yes." Lane hugged Rory. "I'm so excited. It is going to be the best party I've ever been too. Actually that's because I've never been to a party other than a Korean party, and I can assure you those aren't fun."

"This one is going to be great." Ryan told her.

"Yeah because our mom has been saving all of her best birthday ideas for years." Rory added. "It is going to be legit."

Lane giggled loudly. "I'm just glad my mom is actually going to let me go. It is a birthday miracle."

* * *

Later that night the Gilmore extravaganza was in full swing. There was twister, pin the tail on the donkey, root beer floats, a piñata, water gun fights, and much, much more.

"Mommy, Mommy." Ruby said as she ran back into the house holding her water gun. "I got Kirk really wet. He said he was going to tell his mommy on me."

"What did you say?"

"I told him to grow up and fight like a man." Ruby laughed. "And then I sprayed him in the face."

"That's my girl." She led her back to the door. "Remember to keep the water guns outside."

"Got it." Ruby ran back outside.

Lorelai's house was filled with kids and townies. "I can't believe how much fun this party is." Sookie told her. "I've never seen teenagers have so much fun playing games."

"I tried. Do you really think they are having fun?"

Sookie pointed around the room. "They are definitely having fun. You are a genius."

"Make sure they put that on my tombstone." Lorelai laughed.

"You got it."

"Mia." Lorelai was happy to see her.

"This is such a wonderful party." Mia hugged her. "Little Ruby got me with the water gun though."

"She is fierce that one. I taught her everything I know." Lorelai smiled deviously.

"Where are the birthday boy and girl?"

"I'm not sure. I hope they are still here somewhere." Lorelai joked. "Michel." She was surprised to see the moody man walk through her door. "What are you doing here?"

"You invited me. I had no choice."

"You didn't have to come."

"You know I did." Michel said with his nose in the air. "I'm here and I brought present." He handed them to her. "Your kids are going to love them. I'm really good at getting presents."

"I bet you are. Thanks for coming Michel."

"Here mom." Rory said as she walked into the living room, handing Lorelai a drink. "I made you a root beer float."

"You are the best."

"Mia." Rory gave her a hug. "I'm so glad that you came."

"I wouldn't miss this for anything." Mia smiled at the young girl she had become fond of over the past few months.

"Hey Lorelai," Sookie called from the kitchen. "We are out of ice."

"What? No way. I thought I got plenty of ice."

"Did someone say ice?" Luke walked in as if on cue. "I brought a couple of bags."

"You are my hero." Lorelai took a bag from him. "How did you know?"

"I always like to come prepared." Luke smiled at her.

"Thanks, Luke. You always seem to save the day." She hugged him.

"Just give me a cape." He joked.

Lorelai was always amazed by how well he was able to keep up with her banter.

Over in the corner Jess and Ryan were sitting on the couch eating popcorn. "Your mom really knows how to throw a party."

"Yeah."

"I never thought pin the tail on the donkey could be so fun." Jess laughed.

"She has a way of making everything fun." He thought back to all of his parties at his grandparents' house. His mom had always found a way to make them fun.

"I think I'm going to go see my mom next week." Jess had finally decided.

"Oh." Ryan didn't really know what to say.

"I want to see her. She's my mom."

"Yeah. I understand."

"Will you go with me?"

"What?" Ryan was surprised.

"You know Hartford a lot better than I do. Will you go with me?"

"Um sure." Ryan knew his mom would kill him if he got into any more trouble, but he didn't want Jess to go by himself. "I'll go with you."

"Thanks, man."

"Hey Ryan," a girl approached him. "Hey Jess."

"Hey Grace." Both boys said.

"This is such a fun party." She told him as she flipped her hair.

"Yeah. Thanks. I'm glad you could come."

"Yeah me too. Your mom seems like a lot of fun." Grace continued to flip her hair.

"Oh she is."

"Well I'll see you around, Ryan." Grace smiled at him before walking away.

"That girl likes you." Jess noted.

"No." Ryan shook his head. "She was just being nice."

"No. She likes you."

"Whatever." Ryan thought she was cute but doubted that she liked him. "I'm going to go get something to drink." Ryan walked away.

"Where is my brother going?" Rory asked as she sat down next to Jess.

"To figure out if Grace likes him."

"Grace?"

"Yeah." Jess pointed to the girl talking to Lane. "I think she likes your brother."

"Oh wow. I don't know if anyone has ever liked my brother. Well except for my friend Louise, but she likes all boys." Rory told him. "So Jess, are you having fun?"

Jess nodded. "Yeah. It a pretty good party."

Rory smiled. "This one is probably the best one I have ever had."

"I got you something." Jess pulled a wrapped present out of his bag.

"Ooh." Rory smiled. She wasn't expecting Jess to get her anything.

He handed it to her. "You can open it."

Rory opened it and smiled. "HOWL." Rory was excited. "How did you know?"

"I saw your brother reading it the other day. He said that the two of you were always fighting over whose copy it was. He claims that it is his."

"Technically he is right, but we are supposed to share." Rory flipped through the book. "This is really great, Jess."

"I figured it was a present for you and a present for your brother."

Rory continued to flip through the book. "You wrote in it."

"Yeah just some notes."

"So you have already read it."

Jess shrugged. "A little."

"You have read it enough to write notes in it." Rory was amazed. "I didn't know you were a reader."

"I've been reading since kindergarten."

Rory was still amazed. "This is the best gift Jess."

"It is kind of a gift for me too. I don't have to hear your brother complain anymore." Jess shrugged it off.

"Thanks for this." Rory gave him a quick hug. Jess smiled.

The party continued. Lorelai was extremely happy that the kids seemed to be having a good time. Rory and Ryan loved their present. She had gotten them a laptop. She could only afford to get them one. So they would have to share. They seemed okay with it.

"You need some help." Luke asked as he walked into the kitchen.

"Oh you don't have to do that." She took the plates from him. "I can get it."

"I want to help." Luke grabbed some trash and threw it in the garbage. "Things seem to be dying down out there."

"Yeah."

Luke was amazed. "I can only imagine what kind of party you will throw when you have lived here for years."

"I just wanted to do something nice for my kids." Lorelai was really proud of herself. "They deserve the very best."

"I think you did that."

"This was the kind of party I dreamed of as a child." Lorelai sat down at the kitchen table. "But instead I was forced to wear pretty dresses and mingle with people who were as old as my parents." Lorelai remembered. "I'm just glad that my kids no longer have to go through that. They get to have normal birthdays with normal kids."

"This birthday party was not like any that I have ever been too."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"It was a compliment. I'm amazed by all of this." Luke continued to clean up. "By you." Luke said without thinking.

Lorelai was taken by surprise.

"Here." Lorelai helped him clear the table. "You shouldn't be cleaning."

"I don't mind. Lorelai, I…"

"Mom."

Before he could finish his thought Ryan walked in.

"Yeah sweets." Lorelai focused her attention on her son.

"Can Jess spend the night?"

"Um…If it is okay with Luke." Lorelai looked at Luke.

"Yeah sure. That's fine with me."

"We will bring him home tomorrow before we go to my parents." Lorelai told him.

"Sounds good."

"Thanks guys." Ryan walked out of the room.

Luke felt the moment was gone. "Thanks for letting him stay."

"Yeah no problem. We like Jess."

"So you are going to see your parents tomorrow?"

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah." She got a queasy feeling in her stomach when she thought about it.

"Have you seen them since your mom took Rory?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No I haven't even really talked to her since that day. I am not looking forward to it."

"How about the kids?"

"I think Rory is happy about it. She enjoys my parents."

"Ryan?"

Lorelai chuckled. "They are not Ryan's favorite people. He always feels like they are judging him. Which is true. It is how I have always felt about them."

"Maybe it will be good for all of you." Luke told her.

"How so?"

"I know they drive you crazy and that they aren't normal, but they are still your parents. I would love to still have my parents around. Actually I would give anything to have that."

Lorelai touched his shoulder. "I understand what you are saying, but my parents aren't like yours were."

"I know. But maybe they will surprise you."

"Maybe." Lorelai wasn't convinced. Her parents had never surprised her in a good way. She was always waiting for the other shoe to drop. Always.

* * *

 **Let's see if Luke is right about Emily!**

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	22. I'm Done Arguing

**Thanks for all the support. I hope you all enjoy this chapter.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 22: I'm Done Arguing**

Lorelai and the kids pulled into her parents' driveway.

"What's with all the cars?" Ryan noticed.

"They are expecting us, aren't they?" Rory asked.

Lorelai was confused. "I thought they were." She parked the car, and she and the kids got out. They walked to the front door.

"Rory." The door opened and Paris popped out, as did Louise.

"Paris." Rory was surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"Yeah. I'd like to know that too." Lorelai could feel her face turning red.

"We are here for the party." Paris said like it was no big deal.

"What?" Lorelai said louder. She knew her face was the color of a tomato.

"Your grandmother is throwing you a birthday party." Louise told them.

Ryan looked at his mom. He had never seen her so red before.

"No." Was all Lorelai could say.

"Rory, Ryan, Ruby." Emily said as she made her way outside. "I'm so glad you are here." She hugged all three of them. "I've missed you three so much."

Lorelai shook her head. She could not believe her mother had done this. "Paris, Louise…Would you please excuse us for a moment."

"Sure. See you inside, Rory." Paris said. "Ryan." Paris waved at him.

"Yeah. Ryan." Louise also waved as they ran back into the house.

"Oh I didn't know you all were here." Richard said as he walked out of the house. "Let's all go inside. The party can't start without the guests of honor."

"Absolutely not." Lorelai held the kids back.

"Why not?" Richard was now the one who was confused.

Lorelai focused her attention on her mother. "I cannot believe that you did this. After I specifically told you not too."

"What on earth are you talking about, Lorelai?" Richard asked. He really was confused.

"Oh don't play dumb with me. I told mom not to throw this party. We were supposed to come here to have lunch with the two of you."

Richard looked at his wife. "Is this true, Emily?"

"I didn't think it would matter. I've always thrown the kids a party every year since they were young. My friends have grown to expect it."

"I don't give a damn what your friends have grown to expect." Lorelai yelled.

"Lorelai, really."

"No. I can't believe you did this. We are leaving." She told the kids.

Rory stood still as Lorelai and the other kids went to leave. "Rory." Lorelai walked back towards her daughter.

"My friends are here." Rory admitted. She didn't want to make her mom upset, but she hadn't gotten to see them in a few months. "Could we please stay?"

Lorelai was surprised but understood that her daughter wanted to stay. "Okay. You can stay if you want, but I'm not staying. I'll go grab a cup of coffee. I'll give you an hour okay."

"Okay." Rory smiled. She was relieved that her mom wasn't mad at her.

"Lorelai, you do not have to leave." Emily tried to stop her.

"Oh yes I do. I cannot stay here. I can't be anywhere around you." She turned to Ryan and Ruby. "You two are welcome to stay. It is your birthday too." She told Ryan.

"No way." Ryan looked at his grandmother. "This party isn't for me."

"I want to go with you, mommy." Ruby grabbed Lorelai's hand.

"Now wait a minute you two. Your other grandparents are here. They are dying to see the three of you."

"I'll pass." Ryan said quickly.

"That is absurd. They are your flesh in blood."

"They are jerks." Ryan said simply.

Emily couldn't believe it. "This is because Francine punished you for dropping soda on her white couch."

"Yes. That is it. I've held a grudge for the past 8 years."

Lorelai chuckled.

"Are you kidding me?" Emily looked at Lorelai. "You are going to let him speak to me like that."

"Yes. Yes I am." Lorelai wrapped her arm around her son.

"I cannot believe how you are behaving and how you are raising your children to behave."

"I've been disappointing you my whole life, and for the first time I don't give a damn. And my kids will never have to live to please your expectations." She looked at Rory. "I love you baby. Call my cell if you need me before we get back."

Rory nodded.

"Have fun." Lorelai glanced at her mother. She would be having words with her later.

Rory walked inside with her grandmother and grandfather.

Ryan and Ruby walked back to the jeep with their mom.

Lorelai hit her head on the steering wheel.

"Mommy, are you okay?"

Lorelai looked at Ryan. "I will be. I'm just massaging my head."

* * *

Inside the Gilmore Mansion, Rory was visiting with her friends. Emily was watching. She was very pleased with herself.

"Emily." Richard grabbed her by the arm. "I need to speak with you."

"Can it wait, Richard? We have guests."

Richard. "No. Emily. It can't wait."

Emily followed Richard into his study. "What can't wait?"

"Why did you do this?" Richard asked.

"Do what?"

"Lorelai clearly didn't want you to throw the kids a party. Why would you throw a party without her permission?"

"We have always thrown them a party. She doesn't get to tell us that we can't just because she doesn't want to be a part of this lifestyle anymore." Emily tried to explain.

"Yes she can." Richard yelled. "She is their mother and if she didn't want us to throw a party then we shouldn't have thrown a party." Richard was furious. "We have already lost our daughter. I don't want her to take away our grandchildren for good. I was really looking forward to spending time with her and the kids. You should not have done this."

"Richard."

"Not now Emily." Richard didn't want to hear any more of it. "You better hope that she'll come back to us. She is our only daughter. You remember that when you are greeting all of your friends today." With that said he walked out of the study leaving Emily speechless.

* * *

Lorelai, Ruby, and Ryan were sitting at a coffee shop. Lorelai had already gone through one cup of coffee.

"Mom I think we need to put you through detox."

"If someone would just invent a coffee IV everything would be right with the world." Lorelai smiled at her son. "You know you could have stayed at your grandparents' house. I wouldn't have been mad. I understand that those are your friends." Lorelai really did understand. She didn't expect her kids to hate that lifestyle as much as she did.

Ryan shook his head and took a sip of his hot chocolate. "No thanks."

"Really? I don't want you to feel pressured by me."

"I don't." Ryan assured her. "I've always hated those parties. I was really happy that we didn't have to go this year."

"Are you sure?"

"Yep." Ryan smiled at her. "I really liked the party that you threw for us yesterday. That was the kind of party that I have always wanted."

"Mine is going to be better." Ruby said with chocolate mustache.

Lorelai laughed as she wiped her daughter's face.

"How so?" Ryan asked.

"Because mommy has more time to prepare for mine." Ruby looked at her mom. "Can I have pony rides at mine?"

"We will think about it."

"I've always wanted a pony, ever since I was three."

"Mom, you have to do it then. That's a long time for someone to wait." Ryan laughed at his little sister. "Can I have a motorcycle for my next birthday?"

"Yes." Lorelai touched his face. "But just know you will have to kill me first."

"Mom."

"I'm not buying you a death machine." Lorelai took a sip of her coffee.

"Didn't dad have a motorcycle when he was my age?" Ryan asked.

Lorelai nodded. "Yep. He did."

"Did you ever ride it?"

"Yes." Lorelai told him the truth. "But only once."

"Why only once?"

"He crashed it with me on it." She pulled up her arm to reveal a scar. "I was pretty sure that your grandpa was going to kill him."

"Really?"

"Yes. He was so mad. I had to have stitches, and I wasn't allowed to see your dad for like two weeks."

Ryan smiled. He wasn't used to his mom talking about his dad.

"But that didn't stop us. Your dad knew all the ways to get in and out of the mansion without being seen. I found out I was pregnant not long after that."

"Oh."

"You probably didn't want to hear that." She looked over at Ruby who was focused on her coloring book and not paying them any attention.

"No it's okay." Ryan fiddled with his thumbs. "Did you love dad?"

Lorelai sighed. "Yes." It was true. She did love Christopher. "But we were really young. Things are just different when you are that young and you get married. We both changed a lot over the years."

"Dad really changed." Ryan told her.

"Hey kiddo, I know your dad and I didn't work out. And I have said before that we shouldn't have gotten married and that it was mistake…But you and your sisters were never a mistake." She touched his hand. "I am really lucky that I get to be your mom, and I'm really proud of the kid you are becoming. It takes a lot of guts not to stay at the Gilmore mansion. Trust me. I know all about that."

"I think I get that from you." Ryan looked at his mom. "You don't have to blame yourself for dad. I know that it is his choice not to come around. It his choice not to call us on our birthday."

"I really am sorry about that." Lorelai wished that Christopher would have called.

"Don't worry, mom. It's not your fault. You can't make dad want to be here for us. We are just lucky that you choose to be there for us."

"I always will." Lorelai felt tears forming in her eyes. "We should go pick up your sister."

"Can we have pizza for dinner?" Ruby asked.

"Of course." Lorelai picked up her big girl. "Let's get out of here."

* * *

Back at the Gilmore Mansion, Rory wasn't having a very good time. All Paris could talk about was school and how Rory was missing an important year. Louise was yacking about boys. And Rory missed Lane and Jess and her brother. She was excited when she heard the doorbell. She knew it was her mom.

"Mom."

"Hey kiddo." Lorelai greeted her. "You ready."

"Rory." Emily walked into the foyer. "Where are you going? Your friends are still here."

"I know that grandma. But I am ready to go." Rory admitted. "Thank you for a lovely party."

"What about your presents?"

Lorelai nudged Rory. "Go ahead. You can get your presents."

"Okay." Rory walked out of the room.

"Lorelai, I think we need to talk." Emily told her daughter.

"No."

"Excuse me."

"No. I don't want to talk to you. I don't think there is anything that you could say that would make what you did today okay. But I don't want to get in another argument with you. I'm done arguing with you." Lorelai threw up her hands. "I don't have to put up with you anymore. You are lucky that I was willing to bring the kids here at all, but you blew it because you had to do things your way. I already told you that we are no longer doing things your way."

Emily was shocked.

Rory walked back in carrying more presents than she can hold. "Olivia is going to bring the rest." Rory told her mother. "Thank you grandma."

"Are you leaving, Rory?" Richard asked as he joined them.

"Yes grandpa. Thank you for the party."

"Love you sweetheart. Please tell your brother and sister I said goodbye."

"I will."

"See you later." She said as she walked out of the house.

"Goodbye." Lorelai went to leave.

"Lorelai." Richard called out to her.

"Goodbye dad." With that said she followed Rory out of the house.

"Did you have fun?" Lorelai asked as she helped Rory put her things in the car.

Rory wrapped her arms around her mom. "I love you, mom."

"I love you too, kid. But what's this all about?"

"I'm really glad you are my mom." She held her mom tight. "The party you threw last night was the best one I've ever had. I can't wait until next year."

"Me either, kid." Lorelai smiled and then looked back at her parent's house. She can't believe that she let them control her life for so long.

Those days were over. Lorelai Gilmore was in charge of her own destiny, and it felt just right.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	23. At Least I Left a Note

**You all are simply the best readers. That's all you need to know!**

 **Super long chapter ahead. I didn't want to break it up into two chapters.**

 **I hope everyone enjoys!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 23: At Least I Left a Note**

Lorelai walked into the kitchen to see Ryan eating a bowl of cereal at the table. "What are you doing up so early? It is a Saturday." She ruffled his hair before grabbing the bag of coffee.

"I'm hanging out with Jess today."

"What are you two going to do today?"

"Nothing."

Lorelai turns away from the coffee pot. "I'm going to need a better description of your day unless you want to spend the day with me at the Inn."

"Mom."

"Your choice." Lorelai poured a cup of coffee. "I'm sure I can find a thousand things for you to help me with, and Mia always loves it when you are there."

Ryan tried to wrack his brain to find the best excuse. "We are going to hangout around town. I heard the library got in some new books. I think we are going to check it out and then we are going to go have pizza." That was pretty specific, but it was believable.

"Really? That's what you are going to do on a Saturday." She wasn't going to complain. The library was a perfect place to stay out of trouble.

Ryan nodded. "You know how much I love to read." It was true.

"Yes. I know." Lorelai sat beside him. "I believe you. Just please try your best to stay out of trouble. I don't want you boys causing trouble with Taylor."

"We won't I promise."

"Okay." Lorelai decided to trust him. "I'm going to go get ready. I think your sisters are going to sleep their day away."

"Probably.

Once Lorelai went back upstairs, Ryan pulled out a piece of paper to write his mom a note.

 _Hey Mom,_

 _I know I told you we were hanging out in Stars Hollow today, but I'm actually going to Hartford. Jess is meeting someone there and asked me to go with him. I know you are going to be mad at me, but please just trust that I am doing the right thing. I didn't want Jess to go alone, and you wouldn't either._

 _Your one and only son,_

 _Ryan_

He slipped the letter into her purse. He hoped to get points for his writing skills.

* * *

"Uncle Luke," Jess complained as he walked down the stairs. "You told me I could have the day off to hang out with Ryan. We made plans."

"I know what I told you. I changed my mind."

"That's not fair."

"Your teacher called to let me know that you aren't doing so good in math. I told you what would happen if you let your grades slip."

"My grades are fine."

"You got a D on your last test."

"Yes but I got a B on the test before that. I promise I'll do better next time."

"Well maybe you should spend the day upstairs studying."

"Uncle Luke, please." Jess begged. He knew he sounded deseperate.

Luke looked at his nephew. "I want you home by five because you are going to spend the night studying."

"Okay. That's great."

"What do you two have planned anyway?"

"Just hanging out watching the crazy towns' people. They do a lot of weird things on Saturdays."

"Yeah tell me about it. Just don't get into trouble."

"Wouldn't dream of it." Jess said as he quickly made his way out of the diner before his uncle changed his mind. He was nervous about seeing his mom. It had been awhile. He hoped that she was doing better.

* * *

A little later, Jess and Ryan were waiting for the bus. Ryan was becoming more nervous about their trip. He and his mom were finally in a good place, and he was really worried about ruining it. "You don't have to come with me if you are worried." Jess said as he noticed his friend's face.

"I'm not worried." Ryan said quickly.

"Yes you are." Jess could tell. "You really don't have to go."

"Yes I do." Ryan stood up as the bus arrived. "I'm not letting you go alone."

"Thanks." Jess got on the bus and Ryan followed him. Everything was going to be fine.

* * *

"Rory," Ruby called for her big sister as she walked into the kitchen. "Can I have another pop tart?"

"You already ate two."

"I know. But I'm still hungry."

Rory thought about it. "How about I half it with you?"

"A strawberry one?" Ruby gave her sister a look.

"Is there any other kind?" Rory smiled as she grabbed the packet of pop tarts.

"I like the way you think sista." Ruby took her half. "Delicious."

"Don't tell anyone how many pop tarts I fed you."

"It can be our little secret." Ruby sat at the table next to her sister. "What are you doing?"

"I've got some homework to finish. I want to get it done before tomorrow."

"Okay"

"I want to read for fun tomorrow so I need to get my homework done today." Rory told her.

Ruby shook her head. She was only six, but she knew her sister was a total nerd. She noticed that her sister had her first and last name written on her paper. "I wish my last name was Gilmore." Ruby said quietly.

Rory looked up from her work. "Why?" She wasn't really sure what to say.

"Because it is your last name and mommy's last name and Ryan's last name. I want it to be my last name."

"You have dad's last name. Hayden is a great name." Rory hoped to make her feel better.

"But he isn't around. I want to be a Gilmore."

"Ruby, I don't think it is that easy to change your last name. I think you should stick with Hayden. It will make you closer to dad."

"A name will not make you closer to someone." Ruby was wise beyond her ears. "I think Ruby Gilmore sounds beautiful."

"It does sound pretty nice, but I don't know if you are going to be able to change your name. It might hurt dad's feelings."

Ruby shook her head. "I don't care."

"Ruby."

"I know that might sound mean." Ruby said softly. "But he isn't here. Mommy is. I want to be just like mommy. I want to be a Gilmore."

"Well you are a Gilmore no matter what your last name is, and you are more like mom than I am."

"Really? No way." Ruby didn't believe her. "You look like mommy."

"Yeah but you have her personality."

"Personality?" Ruby questioned.

"Yeah you act a lot like her." Rory smiled at her sister. "You are a Gilmore and mom could never love you any less." Rory knew that to be one hundred percent true.

"I know." Ruby hugged her sister. "Does Ruby Hayden sound cute?"

Rory nodded. "It is super cute. And I think it makes you extra special to have that last night."

Ruby stood up. "I want to be like you too." She smiled. "I think you are the specialist."

Rory laughed at her little sister. She really was the cutest little kid around, and Rory was happy to be her big sister.

* * *

Jess and Ryan walked into a small coffee shop in Hartford. Jess looked around. He didn't see his mom yet. "I guess we are early." Jess said as he sat by a table at the window. "I want to make sure that she can see me."

"I can go sit somewhere else."

"No you can stay here. I don't want to sit by myself." Jess told him. He was nervous about seeing his mom. He hadn't seen her since he moved in with his Uncle Luke.

"Okay." Ryan wasn't sure what he was supposed to say.

"Thanks for coming with me. I know your mom will probably kill you if she finds out we are here."

"My mom will be okay." Ryan knew that she would find the note he left her. He knew he would probably be in trouble, but he also knew that his mom wouldn't want Jess to be alone in Hartford. He was going to play the friendship card when he defended his actions to her. He did hope that she didn't tell Luke.

"I know Luke will kill me. I know he doesn't want me to see my mom."

"Why not?"

Jess was about to answer when a woman walked into the coffee shop. Ryan knew by the look on Jess' face that it was his mom.

"Jessie." The woman walked over to the table. "Oh my baby boy." She wrapped her arms around Jess.

Ryan could tell immediately that something was off with the woman, and he no longer needed Jess to answer his previous question. It was obvious why Luke would not want Jess' mom around.

"I am so happy that you came. I was worried that you wouldn't come." She finally released Jess and looked at Ryan. "Who is this?"

"I'm Ryan Gilmore." Ryan extended his hand.

"He is from Hartford. Uncle Luke didn't want me to come alone." Jess half lied. He knew that his uncle wouldn't want him to be alone in Hartford if he knew what Jess was doing.

"You told your uncle? I thought I told you not to do that."

"I know, but I had to. I didn't want to lie to him." Jess couldn't believe the lie he was telling.

"I can't believe he actually let you come. That's one reason I told you not to tell him. I really wanted to see you." Liz was surprised. "But I'm glad you have him."

Jess didn't say anything.

"I'm Liz by the way." She told Ryan.

"Nice to meet you." Ryan felt really uncomfortable around her.

"So let's catch up. I want to hear everything about your life." Liz pointed to the table.

"I'm going to go sit over there." Ryan pointed as he walked away. He wasn't going to go too far away though.

Jess and Liz sat down at the table. "You look great kid."

"Thanks, mom."

"Oh my baby." Liz said loudly. "I miss you so much." She kept rubbing her nose and fidgeting.

It didn't take Jess long to figure out that his mom was probably high. "How are you doing?"

"Oh great baby. I'm doing great. I met a real nice guy."

"Again?" Jess rolled his eyes.

"Oh yes Jess. You would love this one. He is so good to me."

"What about a job?"

Liz looked down.

"Mom?" Jess looked at her.

"I'm going to start a new job next week. Barry actually helped me find it."

"Barry?"

"My guy. My sweet guy. He takes care of me."

"Right."

"Jess, honey, what's wrong?"

"Last time I saw you, you promised that you were going to get better so that I could come back to New York."

"I know Jess, and I will. But honey you know that your Uncle Luke is never going to let you come back to New York. He probably likes having you in Stars Hollow."

"Mom you have to keep a job and stay off the drugs." Jess told her angrily. "I'm not even supposed to be around you if you are on drugs."

"I'm not on drugs. I'm clean. I swear." She couldn't look him in the eyes as she lied to him.

Jess shook his head. He knew that she was lying to him.

"Jess. I'm good. Baby you have got to believe me." Liz reached across the table to touch his hand. "I'm going to get better baby, but I think it is best if you stay in Stars Hollow with your Uncle Luke. He is a really great man. Probably one of the best. You look like he is taking great care of you."

"Why did you want to meet me today?"

"I was already going to be in town. I wanted to see you."

"There is nothing else."

Liz thought for a moment. "Well. Jess. I need a little bit of money."

"What?" Jess was disgusted.

"I couldn't ask my brother, but I thought if he has given you a little bit of money you can lend it to me."

"What do you need it for?"

"I don't start my job until next week. I need it in order to get home."

"What about Barry?"

"He has paid for everything else. I thought I would have enough to get home, but I had some unexpected expenses."

Jess knew she was lying. He could only imagine what she had spent it on. Jess opened his wallet. "I only have thirty dollars."

"Well every little bit helps." Liz told him. "I can't believe he doesn't give you more money than that."

"He makes me put it in a savings account." Jess couldn't believe it. "Here. You can have it."

Ryan saw Jess giving her money. He walked over to the table. "What's going on?"

"My mom needs some money."

"I don't know if thirty dollars is enough."

Jess looked at Ryan. "Do you think you could help her out?"

Ryan didn't know if he wanted to help out, but he could tell Jess was upset. Ryan opened his wallet. "I have fifty dollars."

"That will work." Liz said quickly.

"Here. You can have it." Ryan reluctantly handed it to her.

"Oh thanks boys. This will help me a lot." Liz hugged Jess and then looked at her watch. "I should probably get going."

Jess looked extremely disappointed. "Already."

"Yeah baby. I got to get back to Barry. But I'm glad to know that you are well taken care of. You look great. And you." She looked at Ryan. "You seem like a good boy. I'm glad you are friends with my kid. He needs a good friend."

"Yeah." Ryan thought he probably needed a good mom.

"Bye baby. Tell Luke I said hello."

"Yeah."

"I love you, Jessie."

"Bye mom." Jess felt defeated.

Liz left.

"Are you okay?" Ryan asked.

"Let's just go home."

"Okay." Ryan followed Jess out of the coffee shop.

* * *

Lorelai found herself at Weston's for lunch. She and the kids were planning on going to Luke's for dinner, so she decided to eat somewhere else for lunch. She ordered a sandwich, coffee, and a bag of chips.

She grabbed her wallet so that she could pay for her food. She noticed a piece of paper fall on the floor. She picked it up and read it. "Oh no." She shook her head and took her food to go. She had to go find Luke.

* * *

Jess and Ryan were at the bus station. "Shit." Jess said as he looked at his bus pass. "This was for one trip."

"I thought it was for here and back to Stars Hollow."

Jess shook his head. "Nope. We have to pay again if we want to get home to Stars Hollow."

"We gave your mom all of our money."

"Yeah now I see how stupid that was." Jess said angrily. "I'm always falling for my mom's mess."

"Well now we have to call my mom." Ryan told him.

"No. We can't. She will tell Luke."

"She probably already knows we are in Hartford." Ryan decided to be honest with him.

"What are you talking about?"

"I left her a note. I've been in trouble a lot lately. I thought a note would help my case."

"She wasn't supposed to know at all." Jess complained. "You shouldn't have come." Jess yelled at him.

"You wanted me to come."

"Luke is going to kill me."

"We have no money. He would have found out whether I left that note or not. This way maybe my mom won't kill me."

"Whatever. I knew I shouldn't have trusted you." Jess stomped off like a two year old.

Ryan felt bad. He knew Jess was only upset about his mom.

* * *

Lorelai walked into Luke's busy diner. "Hey Luke."

"I'll be with you in a minute. I'm kind of busy here."

"This is important."

"I know. I know. You've got to get your coffee. But my other customers want their lunch."

"Luke I already have coffee." She held out her cup.

"You brought enemy coffee into my place of business."

"Luke I need to talk to you."

"What?" He turned towards.

"It's about Jess."

"Oh." He pulled her into the back room. "What's going on?"

"Here." She handed him the note from Ryan.

"Who could he be meeting?" Luke asked.

Lorelai shrugged. She had no idea.

"Oh no." Luke thought. "I know exactly who he is meeting."

"Who?" Lorelai asked curiously.

"His mom." Luke sighed. "I can't believe she would do this. She probably needed money."

"Does Jess have money?"

"It doesn't matter. She probably took whatever he had. We have got to go to Hartford. I've got to find him."

"We have no idea where they are." Lorelai tried to calm him down. "They will probably be home soon. We can confront them then."

"You don't understand. Liz is crazy."

"Liz is his mom?"

Luke nodded. "Jess is not safe around that woman and neither is Ryan."

"Hey Luke." Caesar called out to him.

"Not now. I'm busy."

"It's Jess."

Luke's eyes grew and he ran off to the phone.

* * *

Jess and Ryan waited patiently for Luke and Lorelai to arrive in Hartford. Jess hadn't spoken to Ryan since finding out about the note. When they finally arrived neither adult said anything. Ryan and Jess got into Lorelai's car. The ride home was quiet. Lorelai made a few comments about the weather and the drive, but everyone else remained silent.

Lorelai dropped Luke and Jess off at the diner, and she and Ryan made their way home. Lorelai had to go back to the Inn, and Ryan went straight to his room. He wasn't sure how mad his mom was, and he was glad she had to go back to the Inn. If she was mad, then hopefully she would have some time to cool off.

A couple of hours later, Lorelai found herself walking up the stairs and standing outside of Ryan's bedroom. She sighed and then tapped on the door.

"Come in." Ryan said.

Lorelai opened the door to see Ryan sitting on his bed reading a book.

"You've been in here all afternoon?" Lorelai asked.

Ryan nodded.

Lorelai smiled slightly and made her way to Ryan's bed. She sat on the edge and handed him the note he had written her that morning. "Here you go. You can have this back."

Ryan chuckled. "Thanks. I was hoping that you would appreciate it."

"I did." Lorelai gave him a look. "Nice touch."

"I know I'm in big trouble, but you have to understand that I had to go with Jess. I didn't want him to go alone. I know Hartford better than he knows Hartford."

"Yet you didn't know which bus ticket you were supposed to buy." Lorelai joked.

"I've never been one for public transportation." He smiled at her. She didn't seem too mad. "I'm really sorry mom. I thought I was helping Jess. Although, he is pretty mad at me for leaving you the note. And I feel really stupid for giving his mom all my money. That was my birthday money."

"Yeah that was kind of dumb." Lorelai shifted on the bed. "You know that you shouldn't have gone. Luke says that his sister is really messed up, and if that is true neither Jess nor you need to be around her."

"I didn't realize how crazy she was going to be."

"And you should never leave Stars Hollow without telling me where you are going to be. That's not how we work. You don't know that I would have said no."

"I left you a note."

"That does not count." Lorelai informed him.

"I know. I wanted to be there for Jess. I was worried about him."

"I understand that. I do." Lorelai patted his knee. "I'm glad that you and Jess are friends. I think that in a weird way you are both good for one another."

"Me too." Ryan agreed with her.

Lorelai smiled at him. "I thought the note was pretty creative. It was definitely something I would have done when I was your age."

"So you aren't mad."

"I was a little mad. I'm mad at Jess' mom for taking money from my fifteen year old son. But there isn't anything that I can do about that now." Lorelai stood up from the bed. "I know that your heart was in the right place, and that Jess was probably going to go with or without you. So I've decided that having your birthday money taken away is punishment enough."

"Really?" Ryan was relieved.

Lorelai nodded. As she headed to the door, "Oh Luke wants you at the diner by 7 in the morning. He said something about needing help cleaning the stove."

Ryan's face changed. "Mom that sounds like a punishment."

"Not my punishment." Lorelai said deviously. "Make sure to set your alarm. There is no way I'm getting up that early on a Sunday."

Ryan shook his head. His mom was good. She was real good. Maybe cleaning the stove would give him some time to talk to Jess.

* * *

Luke walked upstairs into his apartment. Jess was sitting at the table writing in his notebook. They hadn't talked since getting back to Stars Hollow. Jess knew that his uncle was mad. "Jess, we need to talk."

Jess dropped his pen and looked up at his uncle.

"What were you thinking?" Luke asked as he sat across from his nephew.

"I wanted to see my mom."

"Why?"

"Because she is my mom." Jess said simply. It was the truth.

"I understand that, but your mother has a problem. You can't see her unless I'm with you. That's not just me saying it. It is the judge saying it."

"You don't want me to see her. It's all on you."

"No." Luke shook his head. "You don't get it. I could lose you. If your mom tells the judge that I'm irresponsible, they could take you away from me. But they won't give you to your mom. You'll end up in foster care. I don't want that. And I hope to God you don't want that." Luke hoped he was getting through to his nephew.

"I don't want that." Jess said honestly.

"I thought you liked living here."

"It's not too bad."

"Well we are always one mistake away from losing each other." Luke said calmly. "I like having you around, and I will do everything in my power to keep you safe."

"She's my mom."

Luke sighed. "Your mom has a problem."

"She's trying."

"A new guy?" Luke questioned.

"That doesn't matter." Jess lied. He knew that it did matter.

"Yes it does. Jess. Your mom has always had to have a man."

"I don't want to listen to this." Jess stood up.

"Sit down." Luke said louder than he meant to. "Now."

Jess sighed. He didn't want to, but decided not to test his uncle.

"You are old enough to know that your mom has problems. I'm not going to sugar coat it for you."

"You definitely aren't." Jess snarked. "I know she is a mess, and I know that it was a mistake for me to go today. But it should be up to me if I want to see my mom or not. It shouldn't be up to you." Jess told him.

"I'm your guardian. Anything you do is up to me."

"Great. So you are a dictator."

"No." Luke said sharply. "I care about you. I want you here with me. And I'm the person that the judge thought deserved custody of you. I don't want to lose that."

Jess didn't say anything.

"I'm sorry about your mom. I've always hoped that she would get better, and hell maybe she will. Maybe she will surprise me and turn her life around, but until she does you are not allowed to see her without me present."

"Fine." Jess mumbled.

"I mean it."

"I know." Jess looked at his uncle. "Can I go to my room? I'm tired."

"Okay. Go ahead."

Jess stood up. "I'm sorry that I didn't tell you. I should have told you, but I knew that you wouldn't let me go. I wanted to see her because I was hoping that she had changed. I thought that me being taken away from her would motivate her to get better. I thought that she would change, but she isn't going to change. I know that now."

"Jess." Luke stood up. "She could still change."

"I'm not holding my breath."

"You don't ever have to worry about being alone." Luke hoped that he knew that.

"I know."

"You are going to help me clean the stove in the morning."

"That's my punishment?"

"Yes. And you are going to come home after school for the next week."

Jess grumbled.

"You lied to me, Jess."

"I know. I get it." Jess was relieved he wasn't in more trouble.

"But at least you won't be alone. Your partner in crime will be helping you."

"Ryan?"

"Yeah."

"Great." Jess mumbled as he walked into his room. Ryan was the last person he wanted to see.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	24. Mommy Handbook

**I wasn't going to post this until tomorrow night, but I wanted to show you all how much I appreciate your kind words and support. I added the first part because of a review I got from lorelaidanesfan. I hope you liked it! You were right. It was needed to build their connection. **

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter and continue to enjoy the story!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 24: Mommy Handbook**

 _Lorelai and Luke were on their way to pick up Jess and Ryan from Hartford. Luke was still so upset, and Lorelai could tell. She slowed down a little._

 _"Why did you slow down?" Luke asked._

 _"I thought you could use a little more time to cool down." She turned her head slightly and quickly to see the look on his face. "You still seem pretty mad."_

 _"I am mad." He admitted. "I can't believe Jess snuck off to Hartford to meet his mother. He knows that she has problems and that he can't see her unless I am with him."_

 _"Maybe he thought you would say no, and he really wanted to see his mom."_

 _"I wouldn't have said no." Luke said quickly._

 _Lorelai gave him a look._

 _"Okay. I probably would have said no, but for good reason."_

 _"I wouldn't have let Ryan go either." Lorelai admitted. "That's why he left the note."_

 _"Well Jess didn't leave a note, and we would have been right to say no. My sister cannot be trusted with children. I can't believe she stole money from the boys. That sounds just like her. That's probably the only reason she even wanted to see Jess. And I know that she feels no remorse for what she did. Liz does whatever she wants, everyone else be damned."_

 _"Luke." For the first time, Lorelai wasn't really sure what to say. She wasn't sure what would make him feel better._

 _"I could lose him." Luke said sadly. "The judge could change his mind about this whole guardianship thing." He sighed. "You know it is crazy how life works. I didn't even want to take Jess in. My life was going good just the way that it was. I was just fine being a bachelor. Being on my own. I had the diner. That's all I thought I needed. And then a court appointed attorney called me to say that Jess had gotten into trouble again and the court didn't think that Liz was fit to keep him. I told him I would talk to my sister, but that I didn't think I would be a good fit either. He said that Jess didn't have anyone else. He would end up in foster care and a kid like Jess would never stand a chance. He asked me to come to New York." Luke took a breath. "So I did. I went to New York. I saw how messed up my sister was and how alone Jess looked. I knew that my father would have taken him in without any question, and I knew that's what I was going to do. Now I don't know what I would do if I lost Jess. I like this family we've made. I like having him around." Luke looked at Lorelai. "I don't want to screw it up."_

 _Lorelai had tears in her eyes. She didn't realize what a softy Luke really was. "From what I can tell, you aren't screwing anything up. Jess is a good kid. Maybe a little misunderstood. I know how that feels." Lorelai admitted. "You are the best thing that could have ever happened to him. But you have to understand that Jess is always going to want to have something to do with Liz. You should embrace it. Don't forbid him from seeing her."_

 _"I wouldn't do that."_

 _"Luke."_

 _"Okay." He knew she was right._

 _"You have to make sure that Jess always feels like he can come to you about it. That's the one thing I always wanted from my parents, and it is the one thing I try to do with my kids. It doesn't always work, but it is always better to try. This parent thing is an uphill battle, but you seem to be doing okay."_

 _"I feel like I'm failing."_

 _"You are not failing." Lorelai reached her hand over to Luke's without even thinking. Luke looked at her. She had a way of making him feel calm. "It is completely normal to feel like you are though. You just have to reassure Jess that you will always be there for him no matter what. That's all you can do."_

 _"Thanks, Lorelai." As he said the words he squeezed her hand. Lorelai smiled._

 _Was she beginning to feel something for Luke? No she couldn't. She hadn't felt anything for anyone since Christopher. They were just friends. That's all._

Sookie walked into the lobby of the Inn to see Lorelai dozing off. She quickly made her way to the front desk. "Lorelai." But Lorelai didn't budge. "Lorelai." She tapped the desk as she said her name.

"Oh." Lorelai jumped. "Sookie. You startled me."

"You were asleep." Sookie stated the obvious.

"I wasn't asleep." Lorelai shook her head. "I was resting my eyes." She knew that she couldn't tell Sookie about what happened with Luke. She would totally blow it out of proportion.

"Uh no you weren't. You were asleep." Sookie wasn't buying it. "Thank God we aren't busy, and Michel wasn't the one that found you. He would never let you hear the end of it."

"Oh God don't I know it." Lorelai sighed.

"Why are you so tired? Are you not sleeping at night?"

Lorelai shook her head. "Ruby has decided that she can only sleep in my bed, and she sleeps great."

"But you don't." Sookie finished her sentence.

"How can I when she kicks me in the back with those tiny, vicious feet of hers. Every single time I fall asleep, without fail, she kicks me in the back or rolls over and hits me in the face. I even snuck down to the couch last night like I was a teenager sneaking out of my parents' house again. I finally fell asleep, and she starting crying for me to come back to bed. I'm so exhausted. I don't know what to do. She has always found her way to my bed, but lately it has gotten worse. I thought if she shared a room with Rory she would stop wanting to sleep in my bed, but I think that made it worse."

Sookie frowned. Lorelai looked defeated.

"I love her. I don't want to kick her out of my bed, but I need to sleep. I can't fall asleep at work. That's not me. I don't do things like that. This isn't math class. I actually like working here." Lorelai sighed heavily.

"Lock her out." Sookie said simply.

"What?"

"Lock your bedroom door." Sookie smiled. "The first night will be rough, but she won't bother you again."

"How do you know?"

"We did it with Davey. Married life is not fun with a three year old stuck between the two of you." Sookie touched her arm. "I promise it will work. She will scream her head off, and you will want to kill her or worse, you will want to let her in, but don't do it. Don't give into her."

"I don't want to hear her screaming." Lorelai could picture her little girl being so upset. "I should stop complaining and suck it up."

"Lorelai, come on. You fell asleep at the front desk. You can't do that." Sookie smiled. "Try it tonight. You will thank me later."

Lorelai nodded. Maybe Sookie had a point. But when it came to Ruby she was a big softy, and she hated to see her cry.

* * *

A few days had passed since Jess saw his mom, and he and Ryan had to clean the stove and help Luke in the diner. Ryan tried to explain things to Jess, but Jess was still mad at him. Ryan hated it. He didn't think it was fair. They would have gotten into trouble anyway because Jess' mom had taken all of their money."

Ryan had a feeling that Jess' anger was misdirected at him. He had a feeling Jess was really mad at his mom. Seeing Jess' mom made Ryan really grateful for his mom and his life. He was pretty lucky.

After school, Ryan found himself sitting at the gazebo flipping through his history book. Jess told him not to go to the diner. Ryan reluctantly listened to him. He enjoyed going to the diner and spending time with Luke.

"Hey Ryan." Lane said as she joined him on the gazebo. "What ya doing? It is kind of cold out here? Don't you usually go to the diner?"

"Not today." Ryan said quickly, not meaning to sound rude.

"Oh."

"I'm sorry. I'm not in a good mood."

"Is this about Jess?"

Ryan looked at her. He wondered how she knew Jess was mad at him.

"Rory told me." Lane informed him. "You can come hangout with me at my house."

"I thought your mom hated boys."

"Oh she does, but if we are studying she is okay with it."

Ryan thought about it. "Okay. Sure. It is cold out here."

Lane stood up and a CD fell out of her bag.

"Oh." Ryan grabbed it for her. "Wow. You like Metallica?" He was surprised.

"Oh yeah."

"This is a really good CD." Ryan told her.

"I know."

"I didn't know you liked this kind of music. I thought your mom was super strict."

"She is." Lane informed him. "She doesn't know that I listen to this. She would send me to a convent if she knew I listened to anything other than hymnals."

"I won't tell her. I think it is healthy to have secrets from your parents."

"I have a whole closet and floor board full of secrets from my parents."

Ryan gave her a look.

"If you were allowed in my room I would show you, but you'll never be able to go further than downstairs in my house." Lane told him. "My mom would freak out if you stepped on one step to the upstairs."

"I'll keep my feet on the first floor." Ryan chuckled. "So you are into music?"

"I want to be in a band one day. That is my biggest dream. Your sister is going to be my groupie."

Ryan laughed.

"What's so funny? You don't think that I could be in a band?"

"I have no doubt you could be in a band, but there is no way that my sister, Rory Gilmore, could ever be a groupie. Have you met her?"

"I plan on teaching her everything she needs to know." Lane smiled. "Come on let's go to my house."

"Maybe we can secretly talk more about music."

"We can try." Lane never realized how nice Ryan was.

"And maybe you can help me with this history quiz."

"We can do that too." Lane smiled at him, and they began walking towards her house.

* * *

Jess was sitting at one of the tables in the diner doing his homework. Rory walked in and spotted the broody boy. "Hey." She said as she sat her bag down next to his table.

He looked up from his homework but didn't speak.

"Can I sit here?" She asked, knowing that she was going to sit with or without his permission.

"Sure." Jess also knew that she was going to sit down no matter what he said.

"Thanks. This is the best table in the whole diner. I would have been upset if you would have told me no." She sat down grabbing her things out of her bag.

"What are you doing here, Rory?"

"I'm here to do my homework."

"You never do your homework here." Jess reminded her. "Why is today different?"

"I asked my mom if I could, and she said yes." Rory smiled at him. "If you don't want me to be here I can go, but I've already taken my books out."

"It's okay." Jess said as he shook his head. "You can stay."

"Thanks."

They sat in silence for a few moments.

"I'm surprised my brother isn't here." Rory finally said.

Jess looked up at her, raising an eye brow.

"You know you two are always studying together."

"He is just not here."

"He said you're mad at him."

"That's none of your business." Jess snorted.

"Ryan and I are twins." Rory told him matter-of-factly.

"Yeah I know that. What does that have to do with anything?"

"Being a twin is a big deal. It is an even bigger deal than just being brother and sister."

"How do you figure?"

"When your twin is sad you are sad. When someone hurts your twin they hurt you. When your twin is happy you are happy."

"Okay I get it." He said, hoping she would stop talking.

"You always have your twins back no matter what. I mean we fight like all brothers and sisters fight, but I don't like my brother to be upset. You made him upset."

"Rory, this really is none of your business." He told her again.

"Do I have to go through my whole twin thing again?"

Jess shook his head. "No I get it. But I'm mad at Ryan. There is nothing you can say or do to change my mind."

Rory smiled. "You would have gotten into trouble anyway. My mom would have figured it out whether or not Ryan left a note. That's just how my mom works. She's good. Probably one of the best."

"So."

"She would have told Luke, and you probably would have gotten into even more trouble. He probably saved you."

"Whatever."

"He wouldn't have done it out of malice. My brother isn't like that."

"Rory, I just want to be mad. Why is it such a big deal?"

"Because I don't want you to be mad. My brother likes Stars Hollow because he has you. You guys are very similar, and you make good best friends. I want Ryan to like it here because I like it here and my mom likes it here." Rory told him.

Jess sighed. "I'm not just mad at Ryan." He admitted. "But I don't want to talk about this here." He grabbed his books and walked upstairs.

Rory took that as an invitation to follow him.

Jess closed the door behind him, and Rory walked in. "What are you doing?"

"You didn't want to talk about it at the diner. I figured you wanted to talk about it up here."

"I wanted to be alone."

"I don't think that is a good idea. You should talk about it. That's what my mom always says."

"Rory."

"Jess." Rory folded her arms. "You can talk to me, and you can talk to Ryan. We know a thing or two about having a disappointing parent."

Jess sat down on the couch. Rory followed him.

"Our dad has never been there for us, and I know that he did things to hurt my mom. She won't tell us, but I know there were other reasons for their divorce."

"He was abusive?" Jess asked.

Rory shook her head. "No. He didn't hurt her in that way. But he has been disappointing us all since the day we were born."

"I'm sorry."

"I'm telling you this because you don't have to be embarrassed about your mom." Rory said honestly.

Jess didn't say anything.

"Once Ryan is your friend, he will always have your back."

"I wanted my mom to be better." He admitted. "I don't think she is ever going to be better."

"She might surprise you."

"If she does, I don't think it will be a good surprise." Jess said sadly.

"Well at least you have Luke. He is a really nice man."

Jess nodded. He knew that to be true.

"You have him, and you have me and my brother."

"I have you?" He asked.

Rory nodded. "Yeah. Any friend of my brothers is a friend of mine." Rory smiled at him. "I better get back downstairs. I need to study."

"I can join you." Jess told her. "If that's okay."

"Sure." Rory thought it was the beginning of beautiful friendship.

* * *

Later that night Lorelai was sitting on her bed. Like clockwork, Ruby knocked on the door, but this time things were different because Lorelai had locked the door per Sookie's advice.

"Mommy." Her little voice said through the door. "Mommy." She said a little louder.

Lorelai didn't say anything. Maybe Ruby would get the hint and go away.

"Mommy." Ruby began knocking on the door louder.

"Oh no." Lorelai said quietly.

"Mommy open up." Her voice became sadder and sadder. "I'm sleepy. Mommy, are you there. Mommy."

Lorelai was not strong enough for this. She didn't want her baby to be sad.

"I'm not going away." The little girl promised.

Lorelai sighed. She would try again tomorrow. As she stood up she heard Ryan's bedroom door open.

"Ruby, what are you doing?" He asked.

Lorelai had explained to Ryan and Rory what she was going to do. Of course Ryan didn't think it was a good idea. But then again Ryan never thought any of her ideas were good. She was waiting for him to blow up her diabolical plan.

"Mommy won't come out and won't let me in. I know she is in there." Ruby explained with a sniffle.

Lorelai could only imagine the tears that were falling down her face.

"Is the door locked?" Ryan asked knowingly.

"Yeah." Ruby said quietly.

"That makes sense."

"What do you mean?" Ruby asked. "How does that make sense?"

"How old are you?"

Lorelai thought that was a strange question for him to ask.

"Six and a half." Ruby answered.

Lorelai could only imagine the look on Ruby's face. It was probably the same one that Lorelai had on her face.

"That makes even more sense." Ryan sat down in the hallway. "Come sit with me." He told her.

Ruby sat down but didn't want too.

"Have you ever heard of the mommy handbook?" Ryan asked her.

Lorelai made a face. She wasn't sure where he son was going with all of this.

Ruby shook her head. "What's that?"

"Every mommy has a handbook, and there are certain rules they have to follow or else they get into big, big trouble." Ryan said dramatically.

"Really?" Ruby was intrigued.

"Yeah." Ryan hoped she was falling for it.

"What kind of trouble?"

"Well first…" Ryan was having a hard time thinking of what to say. "They will take away her coffee."

Lorelai chuckled and then grabbed her mouth, hoping they didn't hear her.

"Mommy loves coffee."

"I know, but if she breaks the rules of the handbook they will take it away, and she will never be able to have it again."

"She would be so upset."

Ryan nodded. "And if she continues to break the rules then they will take her to jail."

Lorelai could only imagine the look on Ruby's face.

"They can't take her to jail. Who would pay for breakfast at Luke's?" Ruby asked.

"We would have to cook at home." Ryan said it dramatically.

"Oh no. I don't want mommy to go to jail."

"Me either." Ryan told her. "That's why mommy had to lock her door because you aren't allowed to sleep with her after you turn six and a half. I don't think she wants to lose her coffee."

"I don't want that either."

"Why don't you let me take you to bed?"

"Can I sleep in your room tonight?"

Ryan sighed. "Only tonight." He warned her.

Ruby nodded. "I know. I'll sleep in my room from now on."

"That sounds like a really good idea." Ryan stood up and helped his little sister up.

She followed him into his room.

Lorelai had tears in her eyes. Some were from laughter but the others were for the love she felt for her only son. She couldn't believe he had done that for her.

The next morning Lorelai woke up when her alarm went off. It was the first day, in what felt like forever, that she had actually been asleep when her alarm went off. She made her way into Ryan's room, where she saw Ryan and Ruby comfortably asleep in his bed. It melted her heart. She really did have the best kids in the whole world. She was immensely proud.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	25. Little Chat

**Again, you guys are awesome! I am so glad you all are liking the story. This chapter is a little shorter. I decided to split this one and the next one. As always I hope you enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 25: Little Chat**

"Hey." Jess said as he approached Ryan in the library. "Can I sit here?"

"Sure." Ryan nodded. He was surprised. Jess had been pretty cold to him since the incident with Jess's mom.

"Here." Jess handed him a wad of money.

"What is this?"

"My tips from the last week. It should cover what my mom took from you."

Ryan shook his head and handed the money back to Jess. "I don't want that."

"I want you to have it. I feel bad about what happened." Jess handed the money back to him.

"No." Ryan didn't want it. "You don't have to pay me back." The money would be nice, but Ryan didn't want to do that. "I did it because we are friends." Ryan paused and looked at Jess. "At least I think we are friends."

Jess nodded and a slight smile appeared across his face. "We are friends."

Ryan smiled. "Good."

Jess put the money back into his pocket. "Uncle Luke said I didn't have to work this afternoon. I think he is finally loosening the reigns. Do you want to hang out?"

Ryan nodded. "I'll just have to check with my mom first, but it should be okay as long as I do my homework at some point."

"Cool."

They sat in silence for a few minutes.

"So are you okay?" Ryan asked.

Jess took a breath and sighed. "I don't really want to talk about."

"If you want to talk about it, I'm here. I know how you feel."

"Has one of your parents ever taken money from you and your best friend?" Jess asked him.

"No." Ryan answered simply.

"Then you don't exactly understand." Jess told him. "But it is no big deal. I swear. I'm fine." Jess sort of lied. He would be okay eventually.

"Okay. We never have to talk about it again." Ryan told him. He just hoped he knew that he always had his back.

"Good."

Ryan stared at him for a moment. He could tell Jess was hurting, but he wasn't going to push it. "So how about that math test this morning? It sucked." Ryan chuckled.

"Yeah Uncle Luke might put me back on restrictions." Jess said. He was pretty lucky to have Ryan. And he knew that Ryan understood how he felt. They both had similar backgrounds, and it was nice to have a friend.

* * *

"I can't believe how easy that math test was." Rory told Lane as she put her books into her locker. "I thought it was going to be a little hard." Rory smiled. "Maybe the history test next week will be harder. I do like a little bit of a challenge."

"I don't think anything here is a challenge for you." Lane told her. "You are the smartest person that I know. Could you rub off on me?"

"You are super smart too, Lane."

"Yeah but not as smart as my mother would like me to be. I'm Korean."

"Really? I had no idea." Rory joked.

"Being Korean is a big deal. I'm supposed to be a Doctor or marry a Korean Doctor." Lane sighed dramatically. "I have no desire to do either one of those things. My mother is going to be so disappointed."

"No she won't. Moms don't get disappointed."

"Your mom doesn't get disappointed. I'm beginning to think she isn't real. She may be one of the coolest people on the planet."

"That's what it says on her underwear." Rory said quickly with a laugh.

"I'm just saying Rory. You are pretty lucky to have her as a mom."

"Yeah I think so." Rory smiled. She knew how lucky she was.

"Hey."

Both girls turned around to see Grace standing behind them.

"Hi Grace." Rory said.

"Hey." Lane also said.

"What are you two up to?"

"We are about to go to my house to do our homework." Rory told her.

"Cool." Grace followed them. "Can I come?"

Both Rory and Lane looked at each other. Grace never really talked to them. She had been invited to Rory and Ryan's birthday party because Lorelai wanted them to invite some of the people they had class with to be nice.

"Um." Lane looked at Rory.

"Yeah that would be fun. We really only do our homework."

"My mom will be proud." Grace smiled happily. "Thanks for letting me hang with you guys."

"No problem." Rory was still a little confused, but maybe her mom had been right about getting to know more people at Stars Hollow High. Grace seemed nice enough.

* * *

"You really do look refreshed." Sookie told her friend.

"I can thankfully say that Ruby has slept in her own bed for the past three nights. It is a freaking miracle."

"I told you it would work like a charm." Sookie patted herself on the back.

"Oh wise one." Lorelai began patting Sookie on the back too. "I really am grateful for your awesome advice, and my pretty cool son." Lorelai was still amazed with the way he had handled Ruby. Sookie's trick probably wouldn't have worked without Ryan.

"I guess you got yourself a few good kids."

"Yeah. The jury is still out on Ruby." Lorelai joked.

"And you know what else you need."

"No." Lorelai had an idea what Sookie was thinking but decided to let her say it.

"A man." Sookie said loudly.

"Please say it a little louder. I don't think they heard you in China."

"It's true." Sookie guided Lorelai to a corner in the kitchen. "Jackson and I have a friend we would love to set you up with."

"Who?" Lorelai asked curiously.

"His name is Butch." Sookie smiled.

Lorelai furrowed her brow. "You want to set me up with a guy named Butch."

"Hey don't let his name deceive you. He is a great guy. You two would really hit off. I'm sure of it."

"How do you know this Butch?" She questioned.

"He and Jackson went to high school together. Please. Lorelai. You should at least meet him. I can set something up for drinks. Nothing bad ever came from just getting one drink."

"What does he do?" She asked.

Sookie thought for a moment. "He owns a business."

"What kind of business?" Lorelai was curious.

"Some type of service business. I've never really asked. I know he really likes people." Sookie babbled.

"I don't know." Lorelai was skeptical. "I'm pretty happy with my life."

"I understand that. But you're a woman."

"I had no idea." Lorelai retorted.

"You are a beautiful, smart, kind, and funny woman, and you deserve to be happy."

"I am happy."

"You deserve to have someone."

"And Butch is my guy."

"He may not be your guy, but he could be a fun date. What do you say?"

Lorelai held her head back and sighed. "You are never going to stop bothering me about this, are you?"

Sookie shook her head. "Of course not. I figure I'll wear you down eventually."

"Fine set something up for tomorrow night." Lorelai agreed reluctantly. "But I'm not promising anything. Okay?"

Sookie squealed and then hugged Lorelai. "You won't regret this. I know you are going to have fun."

"We will see." Lorelai wasn't convinced.

Michel walked into the kitchen. "You are never where you need to be."

"Hi Michel. What's up?"

"Someone is here to see you."

"Me?" Lorelai wasn't used to getting visitors.

"Who?"

"What do I look like, your secretary?" Michel rolled his eyes. "I'm going to get a blueberry."

Lorelai then rolled her eyes and walked out of the kitchen. She was shocked to see her dad standing by the front desk. "Dad."

"Hi Lorelai. I was hoping that we could have a little chat."

"Dad, if you are here to defend mom, then you have wasted your time." Lorelai told him quickly. There was nothing he could say that would make her forgive her mother.

"I'm not here to defend anyone. I wanted to spend a little time with my daughter."

"Seriously?" Lorelai was beyond confused. They had never been that close.

Richard nodded. "Yes. Could you spare me some time?"

"I need to pick up Ruby, but I guess you can come with me."

"Delightful." Richard smiled. "I'm happy anytime I can see that little girl."

"She will be delighted to see you too." Lorelai said mockingly. She had a feeling he had an agenda. The Gilmore's always did.

* * *

 **Uh oh! What is Richard up to? Let me know what you thought!**


	26. Sookie Repellent

**As always you guys are the best! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **A reviewer asked about Christopher. I think every good story needs a Christopher at some point!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 26: Sookie Repellent**

"Sookie. Sookie." Jackson said as he barreled into the Inn's kitchen.

"Jackson, what took you so long?" She asked as she grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the kitchen.

"What's going on?" Jackson asked her. "What's the big emergency?"

"I convinced Lorelai to agree to meet Butch for drinks." Sookie said excitedly.

"Seriously? That's why you called me over here. Couldn't it wait?"

"No way." Sookie shook him. "I've done my part. Now you have to convince 'Butch' to meet you for drinks Friday night." She did air quotes as she said the name Butch.

"Why do I have to be involved?"

"Because this is what we agreed on. I've done my part and now it is your turn."

"Sookie. I don't want to be involved with this. I told you this when you came up with the plan."

Sookie made a sad face.

"I hate when you make that face. You know that I hate it when you make that face. You know you can get your way anytime you make that face. That's why you are making that face." Jackson spoke quickly.

"So does that mean you will take care of part two of our plan?"

Jackson frowned. "You know that is exactly what it means. I need Sookie sad face repellent."

"Whoo." Sookie clapped her hands together and jumped. "I think they might sell that repellent at the drug store." She joked as she hugged him.

"It wouldn't work. I'm a sucker for you."

Sookie kissed him. "My plan is going to work."

"Lorelai is going to be mad when she figures it out because you know she will figure it out, and then 'Butch' is going to be mad at me when he figures it out."

"Once they realize they are perfect for each other they will forget that they are supposed to be mad at us." Sookie reasoned. "You have got to trust me Jackson. I know that those two are meant to be together. They just need a push in the right direction."

Jackson wasn't so sure about Sookie's plan, but he would do his part.

* * *

Grace, Rory, and Lane were sitting around the Gilmore kitchen table with a platter full of pop tarts. "I can't believe your mom lets you have pop tarts. My mom is into this big health kick. She's all eat an apple or piece of lettuce." Grace told the girls. "But I'm so happy to eat a pop tart when she isn't looking." Grace took a bite of the strawberry pop tart.

"My mom definitely isn't on a health kick, and I don't think she ever will be. She is a junk food junkie. She hates lettuce."

"She sounds like the best mom."

"She is." Lane answered for Rory. "Rory is so lucky."

Rory smiled. She was really lucky.

"So where is your family?" Grace said as she looked around.

"My mom is still at work." Rory answered.

"Oh." That's not what Grace wanted to know. "What about your brother?"

"He is probably hanging out with Jess." Rory said nonchalantly.

"Oh." Grace looked sad.

Lane picked up on it. "We don't usually hangout with Ryan. It is always just me and Rory after school."

"That's cool." Grace smiled at Lane.

Lane didn't trust her, and she felt a little jealous. She had a feeling Grace liked Ryan.

"Maybe we could all hangout one day. I think that would be fun."

"Sure." Rory still didn't pick up on it.

Lane rolled her eyes.

"Cool." Grace smiled.

Lane didn't trust her, and Rory didn't see the problem.

* * *

Lorelai, Richard, and now Ruby were walking through Stars Hollow. Lorelai and Richard hadn't really had a chance to talk yet. She was still unsure why he was in her town, and what he might have up his sleeve. Gilmore's were always up to something.

"Mommy." Ruby stopped in front of Luke's diner. "Let's go to Luke's."

"Sweetie, grandpa and I were going to go talk over by the gazebo. You can play with your toys where I can see you."

"No. I want to go to Luke's. We always go to Luke's." Ruby crossed her arms.

Richard thought in that moment, Ruby looked just like Lorelai had when she was that age.

"We can go for dinner." Lorelai didn't think her father would be a fan of Luke's. She couldn't imagine her father trying to eat a greasy hamburger and hot plate of fries.

"No. Mommy. Please. I want to go now. I want my milkshake."

"It's okay Lorelai. You can take her to get her milkshake." Richard told his daughter.

"Ruby, you aren't being very nice."

"Luke always gives me a chocolate milkshake with extra whip cream, and he gives mommy her big cup of coffee. We love Luke's." Ruby told her grandfather.

Richard gave Lorelai a look. Lorelai could feel her father judging her.

"Dad, I'm going to take her inside and see if Luke will watch her for a minute." Lorelai told him. "I'll be right back."

"Okay."

Luke was behind the counter. They weren't very busy, but they usually weren't in the afternoons.

"I'll get your milkshake." He told Ruby. "And I'll get your coffee." He told Lorelai.

"Yay." Ruby jumped up on her usual stool.

"Hey Luke." Lorelai pointed to the side.

He followed. "What's going on? What did the boys do?"

"Nothing. That I know of anyways. Could you watch Ruby for a little bit?"

"What do you mean watch her?"

"Just watch her." Lorelai said plainly. "My dad is here."

"Your dad is here? What's he up to?" Luke asked. He knew that her parents, at least her mother, was always causing trouble.

"I don't know. That's what I am trying to find out." Lorelai looked outside. Her dad was just standing there. "Please. Ruby had to have a chocolate milkshake, and I don't want to bring my dad in here."

"Why not? What's wrong with the diner?"

"Nothing is wrong with the diner. The diner is perfect." Lorelai smiled. "It's my dad. He will complain about everything and ruin the diner for me. Every time I come in here after he leaves, I will think of all the crazy things he said, and I won't enjoy myself. I refuse to let him taint one of my favorite places in my town."

Luke happily nodded. He was happy to hear the diner was one of her favorite places. He wondered if it was because of him or the coffee. Hell, it was definitely the coffee. "Sure." He told her. "I'll watch her."

"Thanks." She hugged him. "You're the best."

Richard saw her hug Luke. He turned around when he saw Lorelai coming his way.

"Alright. Ruby is all set."

"We could have gone in the diner." Richard told her.

"Oh no it's okay. We can go to the gazebo. It is oddly nice outside today."

"Yes. I agree. It is nice out here today."

They walked over to the gazebo and sat down.

"So is Luke your boyfriend?" Richard asked plainly.

"I don't have a boyfriend." Lorelai told him. She wasn't going to talk to him about that.

"He is watching your daughter."

"Dad." Lorelai touched his shoulder. "Why are you here?"

"Right to the point. I've always admired that about you. I think you get that from your mother."

"Dad." Lorelai said anxiously.

"I wanted to see my daughter." Richard told her.

"Dad."

"That's the truth."

"Mom sent you." Lorelai knew that this had to be a part of her mother's plan. "I know that she sent you."

"Your mother doesn't even know that I am here." Richard told her. It was what she needed to hear.

Lorelai furrowed her brow. "What?" She didn't believe him.

"Your mother and I are not talking too much these days." It was hard for him to say. It was the truth. They were not happy with each other. "She's mad at me because I am upset with the way she handled Ryan and Rory's birthday party."

"What? She didn't invite all of your friends?" Lorelai asked. "Left some of them off." She added.

"I didn't know that you told her no." Richard wanted his daughter to know the truth. "I thought you were okay with the party."

"I wasn't and mom knew that." Lorelai sighed.

"I know that now. I'm sorry that happened."

"Thanks dad." Lorelai didn't know what else to say. She could tell by the look in his eyes that he was telling the truth.

They sat in silence for a few minutes.

"We are happy here, dad." She wanted him to know that. "I know you probably don't agree, but we needed to move. We needed a change of pace. I was suffocating in that house. I don't need you to come here and tell me that I made a mistake. That's the last thing that I need."

Richard didn't say anything.

Lorelai was becoming more nervous. "The kids are really doing great. Rory is doing well in school, and she still plans on attending Chilton next year. She met a really nice friend. One of those friends that she will have the rest of her life. I always worried that those girls she hung out with in Hartford weren't like that." She took a breath. "Ryan is doing well too. He has met a good friend, and of course he has gotten into a little trouble, but it wouldn't be Ryan if he didn't get into some kind of trouble. He's a lot like me."

Richard nodded. That was true.

"And Ruby is as sassy as ever. You saw. But we are good. I have a good job, and I have also met some good people. People that I can count on. People I can trust. This town is a crazy, weird, little town, but it is exactly what we needed. I need you and mom to understand that. I need you to respect my decision to leave, and I also need you both to respect me as a parent." Lorelai finally stopped babbling.

"I didn't come here to ask you to come back to Hartford. I came here to tell you that I understand why you had to move, and although I miss you and the children very much, I get it."

"You do?" Lorelai said softly. She couldn't believe it.

Richard nodded. "Yes. I want to abide by your rules regarding the children and your life."

"What about mom?"

Richard shook his head. "I think we both know that she isn't ready yet."

"Dad, she will probably never get on board with my rules. That's not mom's way."

"Yes well I was hoping that I could be a part of your new life." Richard looked into his daughter's eyes.

"Want mom throw a fit?"

"This isn't about your mother. This is about my relationship with my daughter and grandchildren. I don't want to miss out on your life. Your mother will come around."

"What if she doesn't?"

"Then she doesn't."

Lorelai couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You would have a relationship with us behind mom's back?"

Richard sighed. "I don't want to miss out on your life. I hope that you and your mother will eventually makeup, but I am going to stay out of that. This is about me and you." Richard smiled at his daughter. "I know that we don't always see eye to eye, but you are my daughter. I don't want to open my eyes one day to see that Ruby is getting married, and I have missed it all."

"Dad." Lorelai was touched.

"I'll abide by your rules. Whatever you say goes." Richard told her. "I promise."

"Thanks, Dad. That means a lot to me." Lorelai smiled. "You can come to Stars Hollow anytime you want." She was happy that her dad didn't have any ulterior motives. At least she hoped he didn't.

"Great. I'll call soon to set something up."

"Okay. That sounds good."

"I should probably get going." He said as he looked at his watch. "Please give Rory and Ryan hugs from me. I'm glad to hear that they are doing well, and that they like it here. That's very important."

"I can go get Ruby. You can say goodbye."

"That sounds wonderful." Richard says as he stood up from the gazebo.

Back at the diner, Ruby was coloring in her coloring book. "Luke." She called for him as she held up her coloring book.

"Oh wow, Ruby. That is great." Luke said of the picture of flowers. She had used every color in her coloring box.

"Will you hang it up for me?" She smiled her big smile that no one could resist.

"Sure."

"Don't tear it when you take it out of the book. Ryan is really bad at that. He always tears the page. But mommy is the best. She never messes it up."

"I bet she has had a lot of practice." Luke took the coloring book. "I'll be really careful. I promise." He took his time tearing the page out of the book. He was surprised he did such a good job. "So how did I do?"

"Not bad." Ruby smiled. "Not as good as mommy."

"Where should I put it?"

"I think you should put it right there." She pointed to the no cellphone sign. "It will look great by that sign."

"You think so?"

Ruby nodded. "Please put it there. I made it just for you."

"Okay." He took some tape and hung the picture. "How does it look?"

"Like I might be an artist one day."

"Hey baby doll." Lorelai said as she walked into the diner. "Grandpa is waiting outside for you. Will you go give him a hug and tell him goodbye."

"Sure. Mommy, you have to look at my picture. Luke hung it in the perfect spot." Ruby hopped down from her seat and ran outside to say goodbye to her grandfather.

Lorelai looked at the picture. "Oh you didn't have to hang that there." She told him.

"I wanted too. I think it brings out the color in the walls."

"Every color." Lorelai laughed. "Thanks for being so good to her."

"She is easy to be good too." Luke reminded her. "So how did it go out there?"

Lorelai made a face. "It went surprisingly well. I was shocked."

"That's good right?"

Lorelai nodded. "Maybe. Yes. I don't know. I always worry that my parents have something up their sleeves because they always do, but he seemed different today."

"People can change."

"I don't think I have ever really believed that." Lorelai admitted.

"I have to believe that." Luke told her. "If I don't believe that then there is no hope for my sister."

Lorelai was about to say something when Ruby walked in. "Okay. Mommy. I said goodbye. Are you ready?"

"You're ready to go? Did you finish your chocolate milkshake?"

Ruby nodded. "Of course."

"She is just like you." Luke told her.

"I'll be back tomorrow Luke." Ruby grabbed her stuff. "Maybe you could put a little more whipped cream on it tomorrow. I've been extra good girl."

"I'll think about it." Luke looked at Lorelai. "Will I see you in the morning?"

"Yeah. I'll be here."

"I'll be the one with the coffee." Luke said. "And Lorelai." He stopped her. "I don't know what your dad said, but I think he was being honest. I have a feeling."

"Yeah. Me to." Lorelai was very hopeful. As they walked out of the diner, they ran into Jackson. "Hey Jackson."

"Oh hey Lorelai. I'm just here to see Luke. We're friends. I don't know if you knew that. But we've been friends along time. I'm not here for any other reason at all. No plans. I mean you know I do have plans. Plans with Luke." He babbled.

Lorelai shook her head. "Okay. Good to see you Jackson." Lorelai realized in that moment how perfect Sookie and Jackson were for one another.

"Hey Luke." Jackson said as he approached the counter. "Are you busy on Friday?"

"I'll be here. I'm always here."

"I think we should go get a drink. We haven't gotten to hangout in a while." Jackson told him. He was shaking nervously.

"I don't know Jackson. The diner is pretty busy on Fridays."

"Oh come on, Luke. I never get a night away from the family. I need a drink. I need to talk about man things."

"We never talk about man things. We drink and watch football or basketball. That's it. No talking."

"I know, and I love it. Please." Jackson begged.

"Sure. Why not? Sounds fun." Luke agreed.

Jackson was pleased with himself. He knew Sookie would be excited about.

Operation get Lorelai and Luke together was a go.

* * *

Richard walked into his home to be greeted by his wife. "How did it go?" She asked immediately.

"Fine Emily." He told her as he handed his coat to the maid and made his way into his study.

"That's all you are going to tell me?" She was confused. Richard always told her everything.

"Emily, we had an agreement. I told you I was going to make contact with Lorelai and our grandkids, and that you were to stay out of it." Richard sat down in his chair.

"Richard, I need more than that. Did she ask about me?" Emily was curious.

"She thought I had ulterior motives. I told her I did not, and that was the truth, Emily. I told you that I would see if she would let me in so that we wouldn't lose contact, but I am not going to betray her trust. I shouldn't have lied to her about the fact that you knew that I was going to see her today."

"We agreed that was for the best. We both know she wouldn't let you in if she knew that I was involved in anyway."

"She wouldn't." Richard sighed. "I hope that the two of you will find a way to makeup, but if you don't at least Lorelai has agreed to let me be a part of her life."

"So you aren't going to tell me what the two of you talked about?"

"No I'm not." Richard told her. "All you need to do know, is that the kids are fine, and Lorelai is also fine. There is nothing else to discuss."

Emily sighed. This is not what she wanted at all. She needed to be apart of her daughter's life.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	27. We've Been Tricked

**As always you guys are the best. I hope you enjoy the date. This is the reason I decided to write the story in the first place. So I hope I did it justice.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 27: We've Been Tricked**

"Mom," Rory complained as she followed her mom into the bathroom, where she was looking for her lip gloss. Lorelai found the lip gloss and made her way back to her bedroom, with her daughter following close behind. "Why do you have to have a girl's night with Sookie tonight?" Rory questioned as she tossed herself on her mom's bed with added dramatic flair.

Lorelai found a cute pair of earrings and started to put them in her ears. "Rory, we've already talked about this. I haven't been out without you guys since…" Lorelai thought about it. "Count how old you are and add nine months." Lorelai joked. "I deserve a night out." She told her daughter. She felt bad for lying to the kids about the real reason she was going out, but she didn't want them to worry about something that was just drinks.

"But Lane was supposed to come. Why did you have to tell her mom you wouldn't be here?"

"Have you met Mrs. Kim? I have a feeling that woman is like God, she knows all." Lorelai said only half joking. "If we didn't tell her then we'd all be in trouble when she found out. And I don't know about you, but I don't want Mrs. Kim mad at me. Besides, she agreed that she can spend the night next Friday."

Rory sighed.

"Hey," Lorelai walked over to the bed and touched her daughter's face gently. "What has gotten into you? You don't usually give me attitude."

"I'm going to be all alone with the boys. That's not fair." Rory wined.

"Ruby is going to be here."

"That's not the same thing." Rory said with an eye roll.

"Rory."

"You're totally losing the good child points." Ryan told her as he peaked his head into his mom's bedroom.

Rory glared at him. "You would know all about that." She sniped back.

"You're just jealous because my friend doesn't have the strictest parent in the world." Ryan fought back.

"Hey you two that's enough." Lorelai gave them both a look and then focused her attention on Rory. Ryan walked out of the room. "How about you and I go do something fun tomorrow? I'll see if Sookie or Mia will watch Ruby."

"Okay." Rory smiled. That would have to do. She loved shopping with her mom.

"Great." She kissed Rory's forehead. "You are in charge."

Rory smiled. She liked the sound of that. Both girls made their way downstairs. Ryan and Jess were on the couch going through the movie collection. Ruby was playing with her ponies.

"I left money on the counter for pizza." She told them. The boys were focused on the movies. "Hey. Please. All of you pay attention to me." Lorelai waved her hands and the kids turned their attention towards her. "I want you guys to order a pizza and have it delivered."

"Okay." They all said.

"And you my beautiful baby girl," She knelt down next to Ruby. "Are to be in bed by 8:30."

"That's sooo early." Ruby pouted.

"No. I thought 8 was too early, but 8:30 is just right." Lorelai kissed her forehead. "Will you make sure she gets to bed on time?" She asked Rory.

Rory nodded.

"I love you princess." She gave her a kiss.

"Have fun on your girl's date." Ruby told her.

"I will hon." Lorelai stood back up. "And you two." She pointed to Jess and Ryan. "Please don't get into any trouble."

"We won't."

"Don't leave the house." She warned. "Don't burn the house down."

"I'll keep them in check."

"No other visitors." Lorelai gave Rory a quick hug and then ruffled Ryan's hair as he protested. "I mean it. Be good." She said as she walked out of the house. She hoped that leaving them at home alone wasn't a big mistake. She trusted her kids. At least that is what she kept telling herself. Besides it was only for a few hours.

* * *

Lorelai found herself sitting at the only bar in Stars Hollow, which also doubled as a nice restaurant. Sookie told her to sit at the bar, and Butch would come to her. Evidently they had shown Butch a picture of Lorelai, and he thought she was cute. Lorelai had tried her best not to roll her eyes. She knew Sookie was only setting her up because she cared about her. That's what being a good friend was all about, and Lorelai wasn't used to that.

"Can I get you something?" The bartender asked.

"I'll have a martini." She decided ordering a drink before he got there wouldn't be such a horrible thing.

"Coming right up."

Lorelai's phone rang. It was Sookie. "Hey Sook. I'm at the bar. Waiting on Butch. Already ordered a martini." Lorelai said quickly.

"Lorelai, sweetie, I have some bad news." Sookie said on the other end of the phone. "Butch can't come."

"What? Oh come on Sook."

"He had something come up unexpectedly." Sookie said. She was a horrible liar. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Sookie." Lorelai was a little relieved. "I'll finish my martini and go home to my kids." That's where she liked to be anyways.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Sookie. I'm fine. Talk to you tomorrow." Lorelai hung up the phone. The bartender had placed the martini in front of her. She took a sip. It was a damn good martini.

"Hey."

Lorelai turned around to see Luke standing behind her.

"What are you doing here?" She asked.

He pointed to the bar. "I'm here to drink."

"Rough week?" She questioned as she patted the seat next to her.

"No. Not too bad. I'm supposed to be meeting Jackson here." He looked at his watch. "But I don't see him."

"Well you can join me."

"Sure." Luke sat down. "So what are you doing here? I'm not used to seeing you without your kids."

"Oh they are here. Rory's in the back with a sailor she just met. Ruby is behind the bar. I'm not sure where Ryan and Jess are." Lorelai laughed.

"You left Ryan and Jess at home by themselves?" Luke asked.

"Jess was supposed to tell you."

Luke shrugged. "Have you met Jess?"

Lorelai rolled her eyes. That made sense. "Sorry. But if it makes you feel any better as soon I finish this drink I will be heading home."

"You came out to have one drink by yourself and go home?" Luke was confused.

Lorelai shook her head. "I agreed to let Sookie set me up on a date."

"Oh." Luke looked around. "Am I interrupting your date?" He pointed awkwardly. Looking around for the guy.

"No. He didn't show up. I've been stood up." Lorelai admitted. "I can't believe I'm a little relieved. I haven't been on a date in a very, very long time. And I've heard blind dates are the worst. I guess it is a good thing he didn't show up."

"Hey Luke, can I get you a beer?" the bartender asked.

"Yeah. Thanks, Freddy. The regular."

"Got it."

"You come here often."

"Usually only with Jackson."

"Have you guys been friends for a while?"

"Seems like forever." Luke took his drink from the bartender. His phone rang. "Speak of the devil." Luke said as he answered the phone. "Hey Jackson, where are you?" Luke asked. "What? Oh Okay. Yeah. That's fine. I actually ran into Lorelai. Yeah. Okay. Of course. Next time." Luke hung up the phone.

Lorelai listened to the one sided conversation. "I can't believe you have a cell phone." Lorelai was surprised.

"I know. I can't believe it either. But Sookie and Jackson convinced me to get one when Jess moved in with me. They said I needed to be reached at all times now that I had a kid. I barely use the damn thing." He placed the phone back in his pocket. "It looks like I've been stood up too."

"Really? What was his excuse?"

"Something with the kids. That's usually his excuse."

Lorelai nodded. That's usually her excuse too. "It is a good excuse."

Luke took a drink of his beer. "So who was Sookie trying to set you up with?"

"One of Jackson's friends from high school." Lorelai told him. "You may have known him." Realizing they all went to school together. "His name is Butch."

"What did you just say?" Luke asked as he spit out his beer.

"Are you okay?" Lorelai asked hitting his back softly. "I said Butch. Did you know a guy name Butch?" Lorelai asked, noticing the look on his face. "Was he a bad guy? I dodged a bullet didn't I?"

Luke shook his head. "I'm going to kill Jackson."

"What are you talking about? Did they try to set me up with a serial killer?" Lorelai was becoming confused.

Luke was still shaking his head.

"Luke." She was becoming frustrated. "Words. Please. Use them."

"You didn't get stood up." He told her.

"Yes I did." She looked around.

"Nope." Luke smiled. "I'm Butch Danes." He extended his hand. "Nice to meet you."

Lorelai was shocked. "Excuse me."

"Butch was my nickname in high school."

"Oh no." Lorelai couldn't believe it.

"Yeah. We've been tricked."

"Wow. Sookie is good." Lorelai placed her hands on her forehead. "I should have known. I should have seen this coming."

"She must think we are pretty stupid."

Lorelai grabbed her cellphone.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm going to call Sookie and let her have it." Lorelai dialed her number but Sookie didn't answer.

Luke tried Jackson.

Neither person had any luck.

"They aren't answering." Lorelai put her phone back into her purse.

"I guess there could be worse things that they could have done."

Lorelai nodded. "True." She finished off her martini. "I think I'm going to need another drink."

"I think we should get a table."

"Really? You want to go along with this whole thing?" Lorelai was a little surprised.

Luke couldn't take his eyes off her. She looked amazing in her little red dress. "I don't get out much, especially now that I have Jess. I could use a night out."

Lorelai thought about it. She could too. "I'm in." Lorelai smiled. Luke was right. Things could be worse.

* * *

Ryan, Jess, and Ruby were eating pizza at the kitchen table. Rory was on the phone with Lane giving her a play by play of their night without her.

Their doorbell rang. "I'll get it." Rory said as she walked to the door. "Hold on Lane." She opened the door to see Grace. "Grace."

"Grace." Lane's voice could be heard through the phone.

"Hey." She held up a bag. "I brought ice cream."

"Cool. But what are you doing here?"

"I heard you talking about it today at school. I hope it is okay that I crashed. I won't stay long. Or I can just go."

"No you can stay." Rory told her even though her mom said no visitors. She didn't think she would care about Grace. "Come on in. We love ice cream."

"Awesome. I brought two different kinds." Grace held up the bag.

"Hey Grace." Jess said as he walked into the room. "Is that ice cream?"

She nodded and followed him into the kitchen.

"Hey Lane." Rory went back to the phone. "I've got to go. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Rory…Rory…" Lane said as Rory hung up the phone.

Lane dropped the phone on her bed. She had a really bad feeling about Grace.

* * *

"I've never seen anyone eat as much as you." Luke told Lorelai as she took a bite of his potato.

"I should have ordered a potato. It is so good."

"Do you want the rest?" He smiled as he pushed it in her direction. "I don't want any more of it."

"Are you one of those types?" Lorelai asked as she took his plate.

"What types?"

"The type that won't eat after someone else. I ate something off of your plate and now you can't eat it. I've always thought that was kind of weird."

"I'm not that type."

"I think you are."

"I'm just full."

"I think you are lying."

"I'm not."

"Then why wouldn't you finish the potato."

"Because I could tell you wanted it even after you have already eaten most of the appetizer and all of your food."

"So you are calling me a pig?"

"I think you should be studied. You should be a thousand pounds."

"It's all the exercise I do." She laughed.

"You exercise?"

"Not since I was six."

Luke shook his head. "You are something else."

"You will probably be surprised but I've heard that before. Often actually. Especially from my mother."

"I didn't mean it in a bad way." Luke admitted. "You never cease to amaze me."

"Really?" Lorelai was surprised.

"Yeah. I can barely take care of one kid, and somehow you manage to take care of three."

"Well they are pretty good kids. Most days anyways."

Luke nodded. "I think it has to do with you being their mother."

"I appreciate that. It isn't easy doing it alone." Lorelai told him.

"I can't imagine."

Lorelai smiled. "We should have another drink."

"Are you sure?" Luke questioned. She had already had three.

Lorelai nodded. "Yes. I'm very serious. Unless you are ready to go. I understand if you are."

Luke shook his head quickly. "Nope. We should have another drink."

Lorelai waved at their waiter.

Luke just stared at her. She really was something special.

* * *

Rory, Ryan, Jess, and Grace were eating ice cream. Ruby had finished hers and had gone into her bedroom to get ready for bed.

"This is pretty good ice cream." Ryan told Grace.

"Thanks. I had a feeling you liked chocolate."

"It's my favorite."

Rory didn't pick up on flirting queues often, but she had a feeling that Grace might like her brother. She was about to say something when the doorbell rang again.

"Who could that be?" Jess asked.

"I'll get it." Ryan said this time as he walked to the door. "Lane." He was surprised to see her.

"Lane." Rory walked out of the kitchen. "What are you doing here? I thought your mom said you couldn't come."

"I snuck out." Lane admitted.

"Lane." Rory said louder than she meant to. "Your mom will go postal if she finds out. You'll never be allowed back over here."

"I just didn't want to miss the fun."

"You can't stay." Rory didn't want to be mean.

"Oh."

"I don't want you to get in trouble." Rory told her. "We can hang out tomorrow."

"I thought you were spending time with your mom."

"Well then Sunday."

"I have church with my mom."

"All day?"

Lane nodded.

"Monday after school."

"Sure. Just the two of us?"

"Yeah. Unless Grace joins us."

"Oh yeah." Lane sighed. "You're right. I should go." Lane walked out of the house.

"Lane wait." Ryan told her as he followed her out. "I can walk you home."

"You don't have to do that."

"I want too." Ryan smiled. "Let me grab my CD player. I got a pretty cool mixed CD the other day. I thought you might like it."

Lane smiled really big. "Yeah. Sure."

Ryan walked back into the house and grabbed his CD player. "I'm going to walk Lane home."

"Mom said you couldn't leave the house."

"She's not going to care if I walk Lane home." Ryan walked out of the house. "You ready?"

Lane nodded, and they started to walk towards town listening to music.

* * *

Lorelai had finished yet another drink and was eating chocolate cake. "I can't believe you don't want any of this. It is soooo goooood." She slurred her words a little. She couldn't believe she had drank so much, but it was nice to let loose. It was like she could be herself with Luke.

"I'm good." Luke laughed at her. "You got a little chocolate right there." He wiped the chocolate off of her nose.

"Thanks." She crinkled her nose. "This really is some good cake. Not as good as your pie. You have the best pie in town." Lorelai giggled.

Luke thought drunk Lorelai was pretty funny. "When was the last time you drank?" He was curious.

"I think you mean when was the last time you were drunk?" Lorelai corrected him. She thought about it. "I'm pretty sure it was the night I got pregnant with Ruby." She nodded. "Yep. That's right. Christopher was home. It was a rare occasion. He took me to a fancy dinner and bought two bottles of wine." Lorelai noticed his face. "Oh God. I'm sorry. I shouldn't be talking about my ex-husband. That's definitely not date talk." She noticed his face once again. "Not that this is a date. Although we were setup. So it could be a date." Lorelai stuttered over her words. "I think I need some water."

"Yeah me too."

"I probably shouldn't go home until I have sobered up a little." Lorelai felt like she should wait until the kids were asleep to go home. She didn't want them to see her drunk. But she had to admit she was having a good time with Luke.

"We can go back to the diner." Luke offered. "I could help you sober up."

"Okay. That sounds like a good idea." She took one last bite of her chocolate cake.

* * *

Ryan dropped Lane off at home where Mrs. Kim was waiting for her. Lane told him she was going to be in big trouble and to tell Rory they probably wouldn't be able to hangout anytime soon.

Ryan was walking back home when he saw Sookie and Jackson walking out of Weston's with their son Davey. He looked around for his mom but didn't see her.

Had she lied to them? She never lied to them. Ryan was confused and now worried about his mom.

* * *

 **Please let me know what you thought! I will update soon!**


	28. What He Gave Up

**Since you all were so generous with all of your reviews, I decided to post this chapter tonight. I really hope you continue to enjoy the story. I sure do enjoy writing it.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 28: What He Gave Up**

Luke helped Lorelai upstairs to his apartment. She was giggling uncontrollably. "Here we go. We are almost there." He got her up the last step. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine." She stumbled. "I'm sorry I'm so drunk." She laughed. "I never get like this." It was true. She could count on one hand how many times she had been this drunk, and two of those times were before she was the legal drinking limit.

"It's okay." He helped her to the couch. "I'm going to get you some coffee."

"That sounds good." She smiled. "I love coffee."

"Oh I know." He had never met anyone in his entire life who could drink as much coffee as she could.

Luke went downstairs, and Lorelai waited on him. She felt bad about drinking so much. For some reason, she just couldn't stop. It felt good to let loose and not think about anything, even if it was only for a little bit. She was sure Luke regretted that Sookie and Jackson had set them up. He was such a good guy. She knew he would never say anything about it.

Luke made his way back up to the apartment. He wasn't gone very long, and he had a steaming cup of coffee in his hands. "Here you go."

"Thank you." She took the coffee and took a sip. "I have loved coffee for as long as I could remember."

"Never touch the stuff." He admitted.

"Well you sure do make the best cup in town." She took another sip. "I don't understand how you can't drink it. The smell alone makes my heart happy."

"Really?" He smirked.

"For real." She answered as she continued to drink her coffee.

"How are you feeling?" Luke sat beside her.

"This coffee will do the trick I'm sure." Lorelai looked at him. "I'm really sorry about all of this. I'm not usually like this at all." She couldn't apologize enough.

"It's really fine, Lorelai. I'm having a great time." He told her. "I've always thought you were a little nutty."

"Thanks." She scrunched her eyebrows. "I appreciate your honesty."

"In a good way." He corrected.

Luke shifted in his seat.

"So I know we aren't supposed to talk about exes, but since I already have, why don't you tell me about yours?" She pointed at him playfully.

"Not much to tell." He shrugged.

"Ever been married?"

He shook his head.

"Ever been close?"

"No. Yes. I don't know." He sighed.

"What does that mean?" She was curious.

"I was in a pretty serious relationship. We were never engaged. Rachel isn't the type of person that will ever settle down. Her name was Rachel. Is Rachel. She's not dead or anything." Luke stumbled over his words. "The truth is that I'm perfectly happy living here and running my diner. She went off to see the world, and I stayed here." Luke sighed and then looked at Lorelai. "I think things turn out the way they are supposed to."

"Do you think you will always stay here in Stars Hollow?"

Luke thought about it for a moment. "Yeah. It might make me seem simple minded, but this will always be home. I feel close to my parents here. I feel like I'm doing what my dad would want me to do." He smiled sadly when he thought about his parents. He couldn't believe he had told Lorelai about it. He didn't talk about his parents with most people.

"I don't think that makes you simple minded at all." She touched his shoulder. "There have been so many times in my life that I wished that I felt close to my parents. That never happened, and I don't expect it ever will. That's why I try my best to make sure I have the best relationship I can with my kids."

"I think you are doing a good job on that front."

"It's hard being a single parent." It was the truth. "Especially when you're a mom, and you have a son. There are things that boys need that moms can't give them." She sighed. "I think if it was just me and Rory, I probably wouldn't stress as much. But with Ryan..." She paused. "He knows how to push all of my buttons and melt my heart all at the same time." She continued to drink her coffee.

"You are doing a good job with Ryan. He is a good kid." Luke wanted her to know that. "I mean hell he has helped Jess a lot. I've been trying forever to get Jess to open up and find a friend. Ryan has been great for him, even though they both know how to find trouble."

"I'm thankful that he has you to talk to. I think that it has helped him a lot."

"I like him. Reminds me of myself when I was that age."

"I wish his dad would come around." Lorelai admitted. She felt tears come to her eyes. She was sure it was the alcohol getting to her. "I shouldn't have married him."

"Because you were so young?" Luke was now the curious one.

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah. And Christopher wasn't the one for me. We tried to make it work. I tried to make it work." She sighed. "I shouldn't be talking about this."

"You can talk about it. I don't mind." Luke was now the one that touched her shoulder.

"There were so many times throughout our marriage that I wanted to call it quits. We would have gotten divorce years ago if I hadn't gotten pregnant with Ruby." Lorelai had never told anyone that.

"Really?"

"She was definitely a surprise. Christopher knew that I wanted out of our marriage. He knew I was unhappy with some of the things that he was doing." Lorelai took a breath. She thought about telling him some of the things that Christopher had done, but then changed her mind. She wasn't ready to talk about it.

"I had every right to be mad at him. He came home for the weekend, and he promised he was going to change. He bought me a beautiful diamond necklace, my favorite flowers, and he took me out to a fancy dinner. He told me over and over how much he loved me. I was lonely and drunk." She wiped away a falling tear. "He left the next morning. Said he had a big meeting in China. A few weeks later I found out I was pregnant. There I was again in a similar situation I had been in ten years before. I chose to stay with him. He promised that it was going to be different. But he lied. Christopher is real good at lying." Lorelai knew it had to be all the alcohol that she had consumed. "He didn't change. He never intended on changing. He only got worse. And here I am at 30 years old. I've already been divorced. I have three kids. I've only ever been with two men in my whole life, and one of them was before I turned 15 and the other one got me pregnant at 16. I don't know how to date. Oh my God. I've never really done anything other than what my mother wanted me to do. I only have my GED. I stayed married to Christopher because it was what my mother wanted. I always promised myself I would be my own person. I would get out of their shadow." Tears were falling down her face.

"And you did." Luke interrupted her and wiped away her tears. "It may have taken you longer than you thought it would, but you have done something on your own. Moving here is a big deal, Lorelai. It was a big step in the right direction."

"Look at me I'm a mess." She held out her hands.

"You're a beautiful mess." He meant it. "You are a very beautiful woman."

"Even when I'm drunk and crying."

Luke nodded. "I'm sure Christopher doesn't realize what he has given up."

Lorelai couldn't believe how sweet Luke was. He really was an amazing guy. Before she knew what she was doing, she leaned over and kissed him. She hadn't meant to, but it felt right. He kissed her back, but then pulled away.

"We shouldn't do this. You're still drunk." Luke didn't mean it to sound harsh. He would gladly kiss her more and more, but he didn't want them to regret anything later.

"Right." She knew that he was right.

"But it felt nice." He admitted, making her smile. "I'd gladly do it again. When you are feeling better."

Lorelai nodded. "I should get home." She stood up but was still a little shaky. "Oh no. I think I'm going to be sick."

"That way." He pointed to the bathroom as she ran towards it.

She definitely wasn't going home now. She couldn't let her kids see her that way.

* * *

Back at the Gilmore home, Ryan was waiting patiently for his mother to get home. His sisters had gone to bed earlier, and Jess had also gone upstairs. Ryan didn't want to go to bed until after his mom was home. He wanted to see if she was going to lie to him about where she really was. He was disappointed in her. She always talked about honesty and how important it was to tell each other everything. But obviously that didn't matter when it came to her. He was curious. He really wanted to know what she could have done that she would have wanted to lie about. Before he knew it, he had fallen asleep.

The next morning Ryan woke up to hear his little sister scream. "Ryan. Ryan." She came running down the stairs.

"Ruby, what's wrong?" He jumped up from the couch.

"Mommy has been kidnapped." She was hysterical.

"What?" Ryan was confused.

"What's going on?" Rory walked out of her bedroom rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Mommy is missing."

"Maybe she went to get coffee." Rory thought.

"Her bed hasn't been slept in. Mommy never makes her bed this early."

"What's wrong?" Jess also asked as he walked down the stairs.

"Maybe we should call Sookie." Rory said. "They were together."

"They weren't together." Ryan told his sister.

"Yes they were. That's what mom said. She wouldn't lie to us." Rory said quickly as she walked further into the room.

"She did lie to us." Ryan told her loudly. "Mom lied."

"Mommy is not a liar." Ruby yelled at her brother. "She was kidnapped."

"She was not kidnapped." Ryan said a lot louder than he had intended.

"Your mean." Ruby yelled at him.

"I'm going to go home. Maybe my Uncle Luke has seen her." Jess said as he walked back upstairs to change.

"I'm still going to call Sookie." Rory said as she found the phone. "Mom is not a liar." She glared at her brother.

He shrugged. She would figure it out soon enough.

* * *

Lorelai opened her eyes slowly. Her head was killing her. Her bed smelled different. As she focused her eyes, she realized she was not at home. She remembered that she had been with Luke the night before, but the rest of the night was a little blurry. She was sure they hadn't had sex. She was fully clothed, and there were blankets on the couch, where Luke obviously had slept.

"Hey." Luke spoke softly. "I got you some coffee."

"The diner is already open?" Lorelai asked, wondering what time it was. It was definitely morning. She knew that to be true.

"It opens in about thirty minutes." He informed her.

"Oh my God. My kids are going to kill me." She shot up. Way too quickly because the room was spinning.

"I know I should have woken you, but you got pretty sick." Luke sat beside her.

"Don't remind me." She took a sip of coffee and held her head. She couldn't remember ever drinking that much in her whole life.

"Are you okay?"

"I will be. Thanks for being so great last night, Luke. I'm…"

"Don't say sorry." Luke cut her off. "You have nothing to apologize for. I had a good time. I was hoping that maybe we could…" Before he could finish Jess came into the apartment.

"Uncle Luke. Uncle Luke, Lorelai is…" Before Jess could finish his sentence he saw Lorelai in Luke's bed. "Oh wow."

"Jess, this isn't what it looks like." Luke immediately began defending their actions.

"Your kids are freaking out." Jess told her.

"Oh no." Lorelai closed her eyes and dropped her head. She put her coffee on the side table. "I've got to get home."

"I'll take you." Luke told her.

"No. No. It's okay. I'll be fine." She got out of bed and grabbed her things. "Thanks again, Luke." She walked out of the apartment.

"Uncle Luke." Jess looked at him.

"Not a word. I don't have to explain anything to you."

"Right."

"I don't."

"I know."

"You're the kid. I'm the adult."

"Uh huh." Jess walked towards his room.

"You have to explain stuff to me, but not the other way around." Luke followed him.

"Okay." Jess acted like it didn't bother him.

"Nothing happened."

"Whatever you say."

"It is the truth. Nothing happened."

"Okay." Jess sat on his bed.

"Okay." Luke told him. "I've got to get to work."

"Alright."

"Okay." Luke stood there for a moment staring at his nephew. "Okay." He walked out of the room and into the diner.

Jess shook his head. He had a feeling Ryan and his sisters were giving Lorelai a hard time.

* * *

Lorelai rounded the corner to her house. She sighed in frustration when she saw that Sookie and Mia were at her house. She shook her head. This was so embarrassing and now everyone was going to know that she had spent the night at Luke's. She couldn't help but feel mad at Sookie for setting it all up.

She let out a heavy breath before she walked into the house. She could hear chatter from the kid and the two adults. She felt like a teenager sneaking into her house, only this time it was her kids who were worried. She knew this wasn't going to end well.

"Mommy." Ruby said as she saw her mom and ran towards her with her arms open.

All attention was now on Lorelai.

"Hey sweet girl." She hugged her daughter. She felt so guilty.

"Mom." Rory hugged her. "Wow. You stink."

"Thanks, Rory." Lorelai made a face.

"Why were you with Luke?" Ryan spoke up. He didn't hug his mom. He wasn't having any of it.

Lorelai looked at him and knew Jess must have called.

"I called Jess. He tried to lie, but he couldn't."

"Listen hon, I know this looks bad but…"

"You stayed out all night." Ryan said bluntly.

"And you lied to us mom. You told us you were going to be with Sookie last night." Rory added. "But you obviously weren't." She pointed at Sookie, who looked guilty.

Lorelai looked at her friend. "I'm sorry that I worried you all." She looked at Mia, pleading with her to help.

"Kids, now that your mom is home why don't you go to your rooms and get ready for the day." Mia encouraged them.

"No way." Ryan said quickly as he turned to look at Mia. "You don't just get to send us away. We are going to talk about this." He said in a harsh tone, immediately regretting it.

"Ryan." Lorelai said firmly. "We will talk about this, but right now I need you to go upstairs and do as Mia said." She knew he was mad, but she wasn't going to let him speak to Mia in that tone.

Ryan looked at his mom and sighed. "Whatever." He brushed past her on his way up the stairs.

"Mommy," Ruby hugged her again. "I'm so glad you weren't kidnapped."

"Oh me too." Lorelai chuckled. "Go get dressed, okay."

"Okay." Ruby kissed her mommy's cheek and walked out of the room.

Rory just looked at her mother and shook her head. She was so confused. She had never been lied to by her mother before. And she really hated that her brother had been right.

"Rory."

"We will talk about it later." Rory said quietly as she walked out of the room.

Lorelai sighed, guilt filling her eyes. She walked over to the couch and sat down. "I can't believe I screwed up so badly."

"Oh, Lorelai." Mia sat next to her and rubbed her back. "It's okay."

"They looked scared to death." Lorelai noticed. "I did that. I put that look on their faces. I never wanted to do that."

"They will be okay." Mia tried to tell her. "You'll explain everything to them."

"I lied to them about where I was going. I should have been honest with them. Although…" She looked up at Sookie. "I didn't know that Luke was going to be my date."

Sookie made a face. "Yes but it seems like you had a good time." Sookie smiled.

Lorelai shook her head. "You shouldn't have lied to me." Her tone was harsh. She was mad. "If you wanted to set me up with Luke then you should have told me."

"We talked about Luke, and you didn't want to go out with him." Sookie tried to defend herself.

"Then you should have respected my wishes."

"But you spent the night with him." Sookie smiled nervously.

Lorelai shook her head. "Nothing happened. I drank too much and spent the night throwing up. Luke slept on the couch." Lorelai sighed. She felt so stupid. "Now my kids are mad at me."

"I didn't tell you to lie to your kids." Sookie defended herself again.

"Well you shouldn't have butted in. My love life or lack thereof does not concern you or anyone else." Lorelai stood up. "I need to shower. I'm sorry that the kids worried you." She told Mia. "I promise my days of staying out all night are over."

Mia chuckled. "You were due a mistake." She hugged her. "Everything will be okay."

"Yeah." Lorelai wasn't so sure.

"Lorelai." Sookie called her name.

"Not now." Lorelai headed to the stairs. "I'll see you at work."

Sookie frowned. She felt so bad. "Mia." She said sadly.

"Oh Sookie." Mia placed her arm around Sookie's shoulder. "Give her time."

"You were right. I shouldn't have meddled."

"I like it when you realize I was right." Mia smiled. "Come on. I'll get you some breakfast."

"We can go to my house. I'll cook." Sookie said as they walked out of the house.

Upstairs, Lorelai flopped on her bed. This was going to be a very long day.

* * *

 **Alright I hope you enjoyed. Please let me know what you thought, and I will try to update soon!**


	29. Gilmore's are a Handful

**Thanks so much for the reviews. As always they mean so much to me. I'm glad that people are still liking the story and sticking with me through it all.**

 **This chapter is one of my favorites so far. I hope it is one of yours too!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 29: Gilmore's are a Handful**

After her shower, Lorelai tried talking to the kids, but the only one that would listen to her was Ruby. Fortunately for Lorelai, Ruby didn't understand what had happened. Unfortunately for her, Rory and Ryan thought more happened than actually did, and they wouldn't listen to reason.

Lorelai reminded Rory that they were supposed to go shopping, but Rory declined. She wanted to go to the park to read and see what Lane was up to. Ryan went into town to hang out with Jess. She reminded them both to be home for dinner. She would order out. She spent the day watching movies with Ruby and recovering from her hangover. She still couldn't believe what she had done. She was usually so much more responsible.

Now she was sitting at her kitchen table with two silent, broody teenagers and an oblivious six year old.

"So." Lorelai decided the silence was going to kill her. "Rory, how was Lane?"

Rory looked up at her mother and shrugged.

"She's grounded." Ryan answered for his sister.

Rory glared at Ryan.

"What? Since when?" Lorelai asked. "I thought you met her at the park today."

"She came over here last night." Ryan told her. Rory shot him another look.

"Rory," Lorelai looked at her daughter with concern. "You knew Lane wasn't supposed to come over when I wasn't here. You knew Mrs. Kim would be mad."

"I didn't know she was coming." It was the truth. Lane had showed up without her permission.

"I don't think she likes Grace." Ryan told his mom, again receiving another look from his sister.

"What does this have to do with Grace?" Lorelai didn't know the girl very well. She only met her at the twins' birthday party, but she knew Rory and Lane had been hanging out with her.

"She brought us ice cream." Ruby chimed in.

"Guys you weren't supposed to have anyone else over." Lorelai warned them realizing they had also broken some rules.

"I don't see how you can be mad at us after you were the one who lied and stayed out all night." Ryan said. He was still very upset with his mother. "That's way worse than anything we did."

"I know." Lorelai sighed. "I'm sorry." She felt like she had said those words a lot in one day. "I should have told you I was meeting someone for drinks."

"Luke. You met Luke for drinks." Rory reminder her mother. She couldn't believe she had been with Luke.

"I didn't know I was meeting Luke for drinks. Sookie tricked me. I tried to explain that to the two of you earlier, but you refused to listen."

"So you're sleeping with him?" Rory asked abrasively, shocking Lorelai.

"Rory, you can't ask me something like that." Lorelai couldn't believe where this conversation was headed.

"What happened to being open and honest with one another?" Rory asked her mother.

Lorelai had never seen her this way.

"It's totally one sided." Ryan quipped. "We have to tell you everything, but you get a free pass because you are an adult."

"I'm not sleeping with Luke." She told her children.

"Sure." Ryan rolled his eyes.

"You two aren't being very respectful." Lorelai told her children, looking over at Ruby to see her playing with her peas. Thank God she lived in her own little world.

"You can't date Luke." Rory told her. "You can't."

Lorelai couldn't believe her ears. "I'm not dating Luke."

"But you did drink like a fish and stay out all night with Luke." Ryan glared at his mother. "And you woke up in his bed."

"I know. I'm sorry." There it was again. "But I think the two of you are forgetting that I'm the mom and you two are the kids."

"Me too." Ruby said gleefully, only half listening to the intense conversation.

"You too sweetie." Lorelai smiled at her sweet little girl. She turned her attention back to her teenagers. "Now if you two can't find a way to sit here and treat me respectfully, then you can both go to your rooms." She said sternly, sounding more and more like her mother.

Rory and Ryan both shared looks. Ryan took one last bite of his food before standing up from the table. Rory joined him.

"Seriously." Lorelai was surprised. "You would rather go to your rooms then eat dinner with me." She was hurt.

They both shrugged and walked out of the kitchen. Rory went to her room and shut the door, and Ryan walked upstairs to his room.

Lorelai sighed. 'What a mess she had made.' She thought to herself.

"They will get over it, mommy." Ruby said after a few minutes in hopes of making her mom feel better.

"You think so?" Lorelai asked her. She wasn't so sure.

Ruby nodded. "Yeah. They still need you. They don't know how to drive yet." Ruby stood up. "I'm done. Can I go watch TV?"

Lorelai nodded. "Go ahead. I'll join you soon."

Ruby hugged her mom. "I'm glad you're okay, and I forgive you for messing up."

Lorelai smiled and then sighed heavily as she watched her little girl walk out of the room. If only she could get through to her teenagers.

She looked back at her food. She wasn't that hungry anymore and decided it was time to clean up the kitchen.

There was a knock on the back door, and Lorelai jumped slightly. She wasn't used to anyone using the back door. It was Luke, nervously motioning for her to come outside.

"What are you doing out here? Why didn't you use the front door?"

"I didn't know if you were in trouble." He laughed. "I didn't want to make the kids mad." He was joking, but then he saw the look on her face. "They are really mad?"

Lorelai nodded and motioned for the steps. They both sat down. "They are really pissed. I don't think I have ever seen them disappointed in me before."

"Jess just keeps smirking at me. I hate when people smirk at me."

"Good to know." Lorelai pointed at him. "I knew they would be upset, but I can't believe they accused me of sleeping with you."

"They think we slept together?" Luke was surprised.

Lorelai nodded. "Yep. I can't believe they would think we slept together on our first date. I'm not like that. You aren't like that."

"So we are calling last night a date?" Luke asked slyly.

"I mean. I didn't. I don't. We could. We don't have to." Lorelai stumbled over her words.

Luke chuckled. "I don't think I've ever seen Lorelai Gilmore speechless."

"It was bound to happen once in my life."

They both sat in silence for a moment.

Luke looked at her. "I think we should try this thing out."

"What thing?" She asked, already knowing what he meant.

"I think we should go on a real date."

"A real date?"

"Yes. One where we both know about it." He smiled.

"I don't know, Luke. I…" Lorelai wasn't sure, but it had nothing to do with Luke. He was a great guy.

"Lorelai there was a moment." He told her. "Even though you were drunk. I know there was a moment."

"Yes. There was a moment." Lorelai smiled. Luke had been so good to her. "But I think it might be too weird. I don't think my kids are ready for me to date."

"Just think about it." Luke touched her shoulder. "I would hate to think we didn't try this because you were afraid your kids were going to be mad. As far as I know, they like me."

"Yes. They like you. I like you."

Luke stood up. "Take your time. There's no pressure."

Lorelai smiled. "Thanks for taking such good care of me last night." He really had been great with her. She had never met someone so sweet. It was a little weird. She never thought tough, baseball cap wearing Luke could be such a sweet guy.

"You're easy to take care of." He kissed her forehead and walked away.

Lorelai smiled. She needed to talk to her kids.

* * *

The next morning, Lorelai walked downstairs to see Ryan and Rory in the kitchen. "Hey you two, I need to talk to you in the living room."

Ryan and Rory looked at each other and followed their mom.

"Sit. We need to talk."

Ryan started to speak.

"First, I need to talk and the two of you need to listen."

They both nodded and waiting for her to give her spill. "I'm not going to apologize anymore. I did enough of that yesterday. I know I made a mistake." She sighed. "Several mistakes. I should have told you that I was going on a date. We aren't supposed to have secrets and that is not just a one way street." She looked at Ryan reminding him of what he had said the night before. "I had no idea it was going to be Luke. I also shouldn't have gotten drunk or stayed out all night." She pointed at them, "I will not be happy if the two of you ever do anything like that. So don't ever think about it." She looked at Ryan.

He made a face.

"But the two of you have to remember that I am an adult, even though we are super close in age. And I am also a woman."

"Oh no. please." Ryan put his fingers in his ears. "We get it. Don't say what you are about to say."

She pulled his hands down. "I need you to understand that I am going to date, but I promise to be honest about it. You two have got to be okay with it. I need you to be okay with it."

"I'm cool with it." Ryan told her. "I'm still mad at you for lying, but I'm okay with you dating whoever you want to date."

"Thank you." Lorelai smiled at her son.

Rory didn't say anything.

"Rory. How do you feel about it, kid?" Lorelai asked her daughter.

"You can't date Luke." Rory finally told her. "You can't."

"What? Rory, you like Luke." Lorelai was confused.

"That's the point. That's the reason why you can't date him." Rory tried to get her to understand. "If you breakup it will ruin everything."

"Oh honey." Lorelai put her hand on Rory's leg.

"And you will breakup." She added.

"You can predict the future?" Ryan asked. "Am I ever going to win a million dollars?" He joked.

Lorelai shot him a look.

"Have you dated anyone since dad?" Rory asked her mother.

"No." Lorelai shook her head.

"Well then Luke would be your rebound, and it would end horribly."

"How do you know about rebounds?" Lorelai asked.

"I read about it in Teen magazine. You have to date someone else before you date Luke." Rory said seriously.

"Remind me to cancel your subscription." Lorelai looked at her with a confused face. "Rory, you can't believe everything you read in Teen magazine."

"I'm okay with you dating Luke after you have dated someone else."

"You are the weirdest person." Ryan rolled his eyes.

"Ryan." Lorelai looked at him. "Rory your dad and I have been divorced for a while now. Luke would not be a rebound." She took a breath. "Honestly I don't know what is going to happen with Luke and me. We have barely even had one date. I'd like the opportunity to see where it might lead."

"I don't want you to get hurt again."

"Awe hon, I'll be okay no matter what happens because I've got you kids."

"Okay." Ryan said as he stood up. "Can I go? This is getting way too mushy for me."

"Go ahead. Love you."

"Yeah. Yeah." Ryan waved at her as he walked out of the house.

Lorelai focused her attention on Rory. "Are we okay?"

"You promise you won't stay out all night ever again?" Rory asked her with a fake serious face.

"I promise, mom." Lorelai joked. "I have learned my lesson. It will never happen again."

"Okay." Rory hugged her. "Then we're good." She was still worried about her mom, but she could tell that she seemed happy.

"You don't have to worry about me. It is my job to worry about you." Lorelai reminded her. "I love you my precious girl."

"I love you too, mom."

* * *

Ryan found himself at the diner. He was the man of the house, and it was his job to take care of the girls. "Hey Luke." Ryan found Luke behind the diner.

"Hey buddy."

"Do you have a minute?"

"Sure." Luke put down his rag. "What's up?"

"In the back." Ryan said seriously.

"Oh okay." Luke was a little confused. "Is this about last night?" He followed Ryan into the storage room.

"I like you a lot Luke." Ryan kept up his serious tone. "I think you are a good guy, but I want to make sure that if you start dating my mom, you treat her the way she deserves to be treated."

"Ryan." Luke didn't want to talk about this with him.

"She drives me crazy. She always gets into my business. She thinks she is always right. She talks way too much, and I think coffee runs through her veins instead of blood." Ryan listed off some of Lorelai's qualities.

Luke just listened.

"I give her a hard time on most occasions, and she probably doesn't deserve it." Ryan looked at Luke and shifted nervously as he tried to find the right words. "She is pretty awesome. I want to make sure that you are nice to her. I don't want to see her sad again."

"I don't know what's going to happen, Ryan. The only thing I do know is that I would never mean to make your mom sad. I think she is a pretty special person."

"Me too." Ryan extended his hand. "Thanks, Luke. I'm glad we had this talk." He was still serious.

"Me too." Luke felt a little weird.

"See you tomorrow for my shift." He said as he walked out of the back.

Luke shook his head. The Gilmore's are a handful. He wasn't sure what he was getting himself into, but he was okay with that.

* * *

Later that night, Luke was getting ready to close up the diner. Jess was upstairs, hopefully finishing his homework.

He heard the bell ring which signaled someone had come in the door. He turned around and smiled.

"Hey." He said to Lorelai as she walked into the diner.

"Are you closed?"

"About to be."

"I'm sorry I'm so late. I was planning on coming earlier but it took me forever to get Ruby to go to bed tonight."

"It's okay. You can come by anytime. I'm glad to know the kids let you out of the house."

"I don't have long." She laughed.

Luke could tell she was nervous. She sat down at the counter.

"Do you want some coffee?" He didn't have any made, but he would make it for her if she needed it.

Lorelai shook her head. "No. I'm okay."

"Are you sick?" Luke touched her forehead. "I've never seen you turn down coffee before."

"Well it is kind of late, and I have had a long couple of days." Lorelai admitted.

"Oh okay."

"But don't worry. I will be ready for a cup first thing in the morning."

"I'll be here." Luke stared at her. He was worried about what she was going to say. He could tell that something was on her mind. "So."

"So." Lorelai sighed. "I've been thinking a lot about us. I talked to the kids about it."

"Yeah I know."

"How do you know?"

"Ryan came by to see me." Luke laughed. It was funny to him.

"What?" Lorelai gave him a slight smile. "What did he want to talk about?"

"He wanted to make sure that I didn't hurt you, and he wanted to let me know how awesome you are." Luke smiled when he said it.

Lorelai was surprised and thought it was the sweetest thing she had ever heard. "Really? He said I was awesome."

"Yeah." Luke nodded. "He definitely let me know he was watching me."

Lorelai was still touched.

"That's how I knew that you had talked to them."

Lorelai nodded. "I talked to them."

Luke didn't expect to hear good news. She definitely didn't seem like herself. "Lorelai, you are killing me here. I'm not used to you being quiet."

"I'm not sure what to say."

"Oh." Luke sighed. "I understand if you don't want to try this. We can forget last night ever happened. It wasn't like it was supposed to happen. I didn't know what Sookie and Jackson had planned. You didn't know either. We can pretend like it never even happened."

Lorelai shook her head. "I don't want to forget."

"You don't?" Luke looked at her.

"No. I don't. I'm nervous though."

"I can tell."

She shook her head nervously and looked down at the counter. "I'm not used to this, Luke. I was married for so long. Too long. It didn't end well. I don't know how to date. I've been so focused on my kids. I don't know how to focus on anything else."

Luke went to speak.

"Wait. I need to say all of this before you say anything." Lorelai told him. "I woke up one morning and decided that I had to stop living the life my parents wanted me to live, and figure out how I wanted to live my life. I was nervous about packing up our things and moving the kids here. It hasn't been easy, but it has been worth it. I wish that I would have found the courage to move sooner. Because I think it is going to work out." Lorelai let out a breath. "I moved here not only to give my kids a better life, but to give myself a better life. I don't know what is going to happen if we try this out. It might not work or it might be the best decision we have ever made. Who knows? But I don't want to look back and wish that we had tried it out." Lorelai smiled.

Luke smiled back at her. "So you want to try?"

"I think we should go on a real first date. One where I don't drink way too much and you don't have to take care of me because I can't stand."

"That was fun."

"That was embarrassing, but at least we got that out of the way."

"I have to admit I'm really happy about your decision." He reached for her hand, and she gave it to him. "We owe it to Sookie to at least try." He chuckled.

"Yeah. I wasn't very nice to her today." She felt guilty. "I took my frustrations out on her. I was such a jerk."

"She did take us by surprise."

"Yes but I didn't have to be a jerk to her."

"You two will make up."

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah. I hope so. I've never had a friend like Sookie."

"She'll be happy to know we are going on a second date."

Lorelai squeezed his hand. "I'm happy about it too." She didn't want to have any more regrets, and she had a feeling that she wouldn't have any with Luke. He was extremely different from Christopher and for that she was grateful. She knew Rory was worried about Luke being a rebound, but Lorelai didn't need to date someone else. She only wanted to date Luke.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I really enjoyed writing it.**


	30. Right Amount of Weird

**Thanks so much for all the reviews. This is a short chapter but I hope you all enjoy it anyway!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 30: Right Amount of Weird**

"Hey." Ryan found Lane at her locker.

"Hey." Lane said as she closed her locker door.

"So. Are you still grounded?"

"Fortunately, I finally convinced my mama that I only went to your house to drop off a religious book. I told her Rory begged for it."

"She believed you?" Ryan was surprised.

Lane nodded. "I know. I was shocked too. She told me that I had to promise to tell her next time I was leaving the house. She didn't want to worry."

"I can't believe she believed you."

"She wants to believe that with our help God can help your family." Lane chuckled.

"Well either way I'm glad you're not in trouble." Ryan followed her down the hall. "Do you want to hang out at the music store today? We can even do some of our homework after."

"Really?" Lane was surprised. Ryan and Jess were usually always hanging out.

Ryan nodded. "Yeah."

"What about Jess?"

"He doesn't share our love for music." Ryan told her. "Besides we don't always have to hangout."

"Sure." Lane was excited. She liked having someone that enjoyed listening to music as much as she did. "I'll just have to tell your sister. We always study together after school."

"She could join us after we finish at the music store."

"Okay. I'll tell her to meet us around 4."

"Cool. I've got to get to class. See you later Lane." Ryan smiled at her before walking towards his English class.

Lane smiled. Ryan was a really nice boy. She had never liked a boy before, but she had a feeling that she liked Ryan. Maybe more than just a friend.

* * *

"Lorelai." Mia said as she made her way to the front desk. Lorelai had just finished with a guest.

"Hey Mia."

"Can I talk to you for a moment?" Mia grabbed her shoulder gently and led her to the side.

"What's wrong?"

"It has been a few days. You have to make up with Sookie."

"We made up." Lorelai thought they had made up. Sookie had apologized at the beginning of the week. Lorelai had accepted it and assumed everything was okay. She had been really busy the rest of the week and hadn't had much time to spare.

"No you didn't."

"Mia. I know that we did." Lorelai was sure of it.

"Sookie is burning food. Sookie never burns food."

"Oh." Lorelai knew that was true. "Maybe it doesn't have to do with me."

"It has to do with you."

"I accepted her apology. I told her everything was good."

"But you didn't tell her that you had another date with Luke." Mia said with her arms folded. "You didn't tell me that either."

"How did you find out?" Lorelai wondered. There were no secrets in this town.

"This is Stars Hollow." Mia reminded her. "Miss Patty knew before you knew." She joked. "I think Kirk told her."

Lorelai shook her head. "I didn't think it was that big of a deal."

"It is a huge deal. Sookie went to a lot a trouble to set you and Luke up. You should have told her that you were actually going to go on a real date. You didn't even tell her how the first date went." Mia's voice was calm and relaxed. She wasn't mad. She was trying to help the girls' relationship.

"Mia I'm not used to having a whole lot of friends. At least not real friends. I knew that she would want to know, but I wanted to keep between Luke and me and the kids for just a little while longer."

Mia made a face.

"I know. This is Stars Hollow. That will never happen." Lorelai realized.

"You've got that right."

"I better go talk to Sookie."

"Yes." Mia nodded. "I think that is a very good idea. I would like the guests to enjoy their meals."

"Understood." Lorelai gave Mia a hug and headed towards the kitchen.

"And Lorelai." Mia called out to her, making Lorelai turn around. "I'm rooting for you and Luke."

Lorelai smiled. Even though it was so new and fresh, she had to admit, she was rooting for them too.

Lorelai walked into the kitchen where she found Sookie moping. "Hey Sookie, do you have a minute?"

Sookie looked up at her. "Sure."

"Come here." Lorelai led her over to the table and sat her down. "I realized something."

"What's that?" Sookie was still pouting.

"I'm not very good at this whole friend thing. You are the first real friend I think I've ever had. Most people only liked me because of my last name or because of Christopher or because I was weird and they liked to make fun of me behind my back."

"You're not weird." Sookie told her.

"I'm a little weird." Lorelai knew it to be true. "But that's okay. I fully accept my weirdness." She smiled. "This isn't about my weirdness. This is about me and you. You aren't my friend for any of the reasons I listed off. You are my friend because you like me for me. I'm so thankful for our friendship. You are the best friend a girl could ask for."

"Really?" Sookie was honored.

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah. I'm really lucky, and I'm sorry if I didn't handle the situation correctly. I was a little upset with you."

"I know. I shouldn't have done it. But I really think that the two of you are perfect for each other."

"It wasn't such a bad idea. Luke and I are going on another date."

"Really?" Sookie squealed. Although she already knew about the date.

"Yes. We kind of like each other."

"Oh I knew it. I just knew the two of you were perfect for each other."

"I don't know about that, but I am excited to see where it goes. This time I won't drink too much and stay out all night."

"That's probably a good idea. Are you going to call and tell me all about it?"

"Of course I am."

"And the kids are okay with it?"

Lorelai nodded. She had told the kids that she and Luke were going to go on another date. Rory was still concerned that he was a rebound, but Lorelai assured her that she could handle it. "I think they are okay with it."

"Good. I am so happy for you." Sookie hugged her. "I'm glad we had this talk. I think I'm going to make onion soufflé for the appetizer tonight."

"That sounds perfect."

Sookie walked towards the stove. "You know Lorelai I think we are the perfect best friends."

"Why is that?"

"Because we are both the right amount of weird. We were meant for each other." Sookie chuckled.

"I think you are right." Lorelai really did feel lucky, and she was glad that they talked about it. She needed Sookie in her life.

* * *

Grace walked into the diner looking for Ryan. Jess, who was sitting at a table in the corner, noticed her. "Hey." He waved at her.

Grace finally noticed him. "Hey." She walked over to his table and sat down.

"Looking for someone?" He asked knowingly.

"I thought Ryan might be here."

"Nope. Not today."

"Oh." Grace was bummed.

Jess could tell. "He is hanging out with Lane."

"Oh." She repeated, looking even more defeated.

"They are just friends." Jess informed her. "You have nothing to worry about."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"You're not a very good actress." Jess smiled. "I know you like Ryan. It is pretty obvious. That's why you became friends with Lane and Rory."

"That's not true."

"You don't have to lie to me."

"Well." She backtracked. "It's a little true."

"A little true?" He questioned.

Grace looked at Jess. "I saw the way Ryan defended Rory to Tristan. It was the sweetest thing ever. I've also seen the way that Rory and Lane are together. I've never had that before. A true friend. That's what I want." Grace shrugged. "I'm tired of my old life. Fake friends. I want to be a part of your group."

"Cool."

"Cool?" She smirked.

"Yeah. I never thought I wanted to be a part of a group before." Jess smiled. "But this group isn't too bad."

"Do you think Rory and Lane will still want to be friends if they know that I like Ryan?"

Jess shrugged. "Sure. I don't think it matters."

"I don't want to lose their friendship." Grace smiled honestly. She liked being a part of a group.

"You want to do your homework with me?"

"Sure. Sounds great." Grace took out her notebook to start her homework.

* * *

Ryan and Lane were in the music store flipping through CD's. Lucky for them the store was quiet, and they were sitting in the back corner. Lane didn't want her mama to see them from the street. She would go crazy, and Lane wasn't in the mood for that.

"I cannot believe that we like the same music." Lane told him. "I'm actually happy I have someone to talk music with."

"Oh yeah me too. I mean my mom and sister like the same music, but it's different with you. You just get it." Ryan smiled at her.

"Yeah. I hate that I have to hide it from my mom. She would freak out if she knew what kind of music I listen too. She would lock me in my room if she knew that I wanted to be in a band."

"Maybe you will be able to tell her one day."

Lane shook her head. "No way. She will never understand me."

"Well I understand you." Ryan smiled at her. "I think you are pretty cool Lane Kim."

Lane smiled the biggest smile she could muster. She thought Ryan Gilmore was pretty cool himself. She wasn't sure what came over her but she found herself leaning in to kiss him.

Ryan was taken by surprise at first.

"I'm so sorry." Lane said quickly as they broke apart. She felt stupid.

"It's okay." Ryan had never kissed anyone before. He thought he might have done it wrong. He wasn't sure what came over him, but he was now the one that leaned in and kissed her.

While they were kissing, Rory had walked into the store to join them. She was shocked to see her brother and best friend kissing in the music store. This couldn't happen. They couldn't kiss each other.

* * *

 **So a lot of you were worried that Grace was up to no good. That's probably my fault for the way that I was writing her. She just wants to have real friends.**

 **Let me know what you thought. A lot of you predicted Lane and Ryan, but we will see how long it lasts.**

 **Thanks again for the support.**


	31. It is Inevitable

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter. There is a surprise at the end. Thanks again for all the support.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 31: It is Inevitable**

Rory waited patiently for her brother to get home. Her mom was upstairs changing, and Ruby was at Sookie's house playing with Davey.

Ryan finally walked in the front door. He was a few minutes late, but he didn't think his mom would be too mad at him. He was still shocked by the events that had taken place in the music store, but he was happy that it happened. He liked Lane. She was a lot of fun, and they had a lot in common.

"Ryan." Rory said as she saw him walking towards the stairs.

"Oh. Hey Ror. You scared me." Ryan told his sister.

"I saw you." Rory admitted.

"I know. But I didn't see you." Ryan was confused.

"No. At the music store." She hoped the added detail would help him understand what she was talking about.

"Oh." Ryan sighed. "What did you see?"

"You were kissing Lane." Rory stood up to stand beside him.

"Yeah. So." Ryan shrugged. He didn't want to make it a big deal.

"You can't kiss her."

"What?" Ryan looked at her with a confused look.

"You can't kiss Lane. She is my best friend."

"So." He didn't see why it mattered.

"Do you like Lane?" Rory asked.

"I don't have to answer that." Ryan was frustrated with his sister. "And you can't tell me who I can kiss."

"Yes I can. She is my best friend."

"So you said." Ryan sighed and walked into the kitchen. Rory followed him. "Rory."

"I wouldn't kiss your best friend."

"My best friend doesn't want to kiss you." Ryan opened the fridge to grab something to drink.

"Well if he did, I wouldn't kiss him. Because I have respect for you."

"Oh Rory. Jess doesn't want to kiss you."

"Ryan if you and Lane date then it will be awkward when you breakup."

"We aren't dating, but if we did we wouldn't breakup." Ryan rolled his eyes.

Rory nodded. "Yes you would. You would do something stupid."

"You are being a real jerk." Ryan yelled at her.

"You are being the jerk by kissing Lane."

"Who the hell do you think you are telling me and mom who we can and cannot date? Last time I checked, you weren't in charge of either one of us, and it isn't up to you tell us who to like." Ryan yelled at her.

"I'm just trying to help. I know."

"You don't know." He yelled again. "You are just jealous because no one wants to kiss you."

"That's not true." Rory yelled. "I just don't want you to kiss Lane."

"Well you can't tell me what to do." Ryan yelled again.

"You never listen to anyone anyways." Rory yelled.

"This is stupid."

"Your stupid." Rory yelled louder.

"Hey." Lorelai walked into the kitchen after she heard the yelling. "What is going on in here?"

"Rory is being a jerk."

"No Ryan is the jerk."

They talked over each other.

"Hey. Hold on." Lorelai waved her hand. "Calm down. What happened?"

"Nothing." Ryan said quickly. He wasn't ready for his mom to know that he kissed someone.

"Ryan kissed Lane."

"Rory." Ryan hissed.

Lorelai was surprised. "You kissed Lane?"

"Thanks a lot Rory." Ryan glared at her. "It is none of your business."

"It is my business." Rory sighed. "You will ruin our friendship."

"I'm not going to ruin anything. This isn't about you. Not everything is about precious Rory." Ryan snapped. "Mom tell her she can't tell me what to do."

"No mom tell him he can't date Lane. You have to be on my side."

"I didn't say I was dating Lane."

"Well you shouldn't go around kissing people you don't want to date."

"Mom."

"Mom."

"Okay enough. I want you both to go to your rooms." She figured she could handle the situation better if the kids were separate.

"But."

"Mom."

They both complained.

"Not kidding. Go." She pointed.

"This sucks. I didn't do anything wrong." Ryan huffed as he made his way upstairs.

Rory didn't say anything and went into her room as she was told.

Lorelai sighed. Which kid should she talk to first? She thought for a moment and decided she should talk to Rory first.

"Hey." She tapped on the door and walked in. Rory was sitting on her bed waiting for her mom to join her. "You want to tell me what that was all about?" Lorelai sat beside her daughter.

"He kissed Lane. You should talk to Ryan about that."

"I want to talk to you about why you are so upset about it." Lorelai still couldn't decide how she felt about it. She wasn't ready for her kids to start kissing. But it was Lane. If she could pick any girl for Ryan it would be Lane. She knew Lane was a good, sweet kid, and she wasn't worried about the two of them getting in trouble, especially with Mrs. Kim on the prowl.

"Lane is my best friend." Rory told her.

"I know that." Lorelai smiled at her daughter.

"It will be weird if they like each other. She will no longer want to hang out with me."

"Oh hon, do you really think that?"

Rory nodded. "And then if they breakup it will be extremely awkward. I don't want to lose my best friend."

"That would never happen." Lorelai rubbed Rory's back. "Rory, you have to know that you and Lane are at that age where you are going to like boys. Although I would like to pretend that you are still a baby, the truth is, you are a teenager. And typically teenage girls like boys. Soon enough you will be kissing boys too."

"I don't care if Lane kisses boys. I don't want her kissing Ryan."

"Rory."

"No mom. I'm not going to change my mind on this."

"I understand how you feel, Rory. But one day I know you will learn that you can't help who you like, and if Lane and Ryan like each other then you can't get in the way of that." Lorelai continued to rub her back. "I know Lane and I know your brother, and they would never leave you out. I have watched you and Lane become the best of friends in such a short time, and I know that she wouldn't let that go just because she likes your brother. You have to trust that."

Rory sighed. She knew her mom was right, but she needed more time to process it.

"I'm going to go talk to your brother. Hopefully he has calmed down a little bit." Lorelai stood up and walked to the door. "Rory, if you didn't listen to anything I said, please listen to this." Lorelai smiled at her daughter. "You can't be so scared that something bad is going to happen, that you don't let things happen naturally. The truth is that we can't predict the future. We have no way of knowing what is going to happen. We just have to live our lives and know we did the best that we could. And it isn't your job to take care of us." She hoped that she knew that.

Rory grabbed a book off of her night stand and crawled to the head of her bed.

Lorelai hated to see Rory upset, but she wasn't sure she had a reason to be upset.

She made her way upstairs and gently tapped on Ryan's door. She entered when she heard him say come in. She smiled at the sight. Ryan was sitting on his bed reading a book, the same thing Rory had been doing when she left her.

"Can we talk?" She slowly pulled the book out of his hands.

Ryan didn't say anything. He just looked at his mother.

"You want to tell me about the kiss?" She smiled at him.

"That's the last thing I want to do." Ryan rolled his eyes. "I'm not talking to my mommy about that kind of stuff."

"If you can't talk to me about it then who can you talk to about it."

"Jess."

"That doesn't make me feel better." Lorelai was now the one rolling her eyes. "Ryan."

"Mom. Please don't make me talk about it."

"Well then tell me why you were yelling at your sister."

"She was yelling at me. I can't be in trouble for that."

"You are not in trouble." Lorelai patted his knee. "I don't like it when the two of you fight."

Ryan sighed.

"I think Lane is the sweetest kid."

"Mom." He didn't want to talk about it.

"It is the truth." Lorelai smiled. "Any mom would be happy to have her son kissing someone as great as Lane."

"Mom." He complained again.

"But."

"But?"

"You have to think about what can happen if you date Lane."

"And we breakup?"

Lorelai nodded. "That's Rory's concern. She doesn't want it to be awkward."

"So she said." Ryan rolled his eyes.

"Ryan."

"I know it could be weird, but Lane and I have a lot in common."

"I think that is great."

"I didn't mean to kiss Lane. Actually she kissed me first."

"Really?" Lorelai was surprised.

"Yeah. Then I kissed her back." Ryan admitted, not realizing he was actually talking about it with his mom. "We were looking at CDs and talking about music."

"That's how all good kisses happen."

Ryan gave his mom a look.

"On a serious note I like that you are all friends. I think friendship is the most important thing that you can have, especially when you are a teenager."

Ryan nodded. He knew that she was right.

"And the truth is that there are going to be a lot of girls in your life. You are young. You're going to break a lot of hearts." Lorelai informed him. "You have Gilmore and Hayden blood running through your veins. It is inevitable."

"So you think we should just be friends?" Ryan could tell what his mom was thinking.

Lorelai stood up. "I think you are fifteen years old."

"And?" He motioned with his hands to give him more.

"I think you have to figure out what you want. I can't. Rory can't. But you can. But what you want at fifteen probably won't be what you want five years down the line." She walked to the door.

"Thanks a lot mom."

"Anytime. Next time I'm charging." She laughed as she left his room. It was time for her to get ready for her date with Luke.

* * *

Grace and Jess finally finished their homework. "I probably should get home." She packed up her bag.

"Okay."

"Thanks for hanging out with me."

"You are part of the group." Jess laughed.

"Thanks for not making fun of me."

"I'm not laughing at you." Jess told her.

"So will you help me with Ryan?" She asked. "Since you guys are so close."

"Sure."

Grace smiled. "Thanks Jess. You are the best." She hugged him. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah. See you tomorrow."

After Grace left, Luke came over to the table. "So do you like that girl?"

"No." Jess shook his head. "Not at all. She likes Ryan."

"Oh." Luke nodded.

"What was with the oh?"

"Nothing."

Jess gave him a look.

"It was nothing. I like to use the word oh. It is a good monosyllable." Luke smiled at his nephew.

"Yeah whatever." Jess looked at his watch. "Don't you have a date to get ready for?"

Luke nodded. "Yes. I want you to do your homework while I am out."

"It's Friday."

"I want you to get it done before the last minute. I don't want to hear you belly aching about having to stay up late on Sunday to get it done."

"Fine. Can I got to Ryan's house?"

"Not tonight."

"You are going out with his mom."

"Yes. But I know if I let you go over there you will not do your homework."

Jess sighed. "Fine. But if I wasn't here then you could bring Lorelai back."

"No way. We are not having this conversation."

"Did you forget that I found her in your bed last time?"

"Jess." Luke warned.

"Okay. I got it. I'm going upstairs."

"Thank you." Luke sighed.

"You've got a date tonight, Luke?" Kirk asked, overhearing the conversation.

"Go away Kirk." Luke did not want to have this conversation with him.

"But Luke. I want to hear about your date."

"I don't care, Kirk. Go away."

"But Luke." Kirk complained.

"No. Go. Kirk."

Kirk pouted but then did as Luke said.

Luke rolled his eyes. This town of his was beyond crazy.

* * *

Ryan stood outside of Kim Antiques. He thought about his conversation with his mom. He knew that she was right about friendship.

"Hey. What are you doing standing out here? My mama saw you and thought you might be a burglar." Lane laughed.

"I think we should talk."

"Me too."

"It's not bad." Ryan didn't think so.

"I don't think we should kiss anymore either." Lane spoke quickly.

"What?" That's not what he was expecting.

"I thought about it too. I don't want to ruin our friendship." Lane smiled. "You are so awesome, and that's why I think we should just stay friends."

"I agree." He nodded.

"Besides my mama would never allow it. I don't want her to forbid me from seeing you."

"Me either. I think we are making the right decision."

"I'm really glad you were my first kiss." Lane admitted.

Ryan nodded. "It was nice. You are a good kisser."

Lane blushed. "You are too." She held out her hand. "Friends."

"Friends." Ryan shook her hand.

It was the right decision, even if it wasn't the one Ryan had gone to her house to make.

* * *

Later that day Ryan walked into Rory's bedroom. "Hey." He greeted her.

"Hey." She looked up from her homework. "I'm sorry about earlier." She had been consumed with guilt since their argument that afternoon.

"Me too. I shouldn't have gotten so mad at you."

"I shouldn't have told you that you can't kiss Lane. If you want to kiss Lane then you should be able to kiss Lane. I was wrong. You and Lane are the only ones who can decide if you like each other. Not me."

Ryan smiled. "We decided that we are better as just friends."

Rory tried to hide her relief.

"You can smile. It is okay. It is for the best. We are only fifteen."

"As long as you are happy with it." Rory told him. She didn't want to be responsible for their choices.

"No more fighting." He extended his hand.

"No more fighting." Instead of shaking his hand, she gave him a hug.

"Aw." Lorelai walked into the room. "That's exactly what I love to see. I want in. Group hug." Lorelai joined in on the hug.

"Okay. Okay." Ryan pulled away. "That's enough for me."

"Aw you two are the cutest teenagers on the whole planet."

"You look great mom." Rory noted. Lorelai was wearing her favorite pair of jeans, boots, and blue sweater.

"Thanks hon." Lorelai smiled. She couldn't believe how nervous she was. She shouldn't be. She had seen Luke almost every day since they had moved to town five months ago. This should be no different. But it was. She wanted the date to go well. She was happy about getting to know him better.

The doorbell rang.

"That's him." Rory smiled at her mother. She was still unsure about the pairing, but she was going to let her mom and Luke make their own decisions. It wasn't her job to decide what was best for everyone else.

Lorelai smiled.

"Have fun. But not too much fun." Ryan joked. "You are to be home by 10."

Lorelai laughed. "I promise dad. I'll be good." Lorelai ruffled his hair. "It is just the two of you tonight. Ruby is with Sookie. Order takeout. And this time no leaving the house." Lorelai warned them.

"We won't." Rory promised.

Lorelai walked to the door, but she was taken aback when it wasn't Luke standing in front of her. It was Christopher.

"Hey Lor."

"Christopher." She said quietly, still in shock.

"I've missed you." Before she knew what was happening, Christopher wrapped her in his arms and kissed her. Just as Luke was pulling into the driveway.

* * *

 **Did you see that coming? Let me know what you thought! I love feedback.**


	32. Ex-Husband

**Thanks again for the reviews, faves, and follows! I'm so glad that you guys weren't too mad about Christopher showing up. I'm not sure how you are going to feel about this chapter.**

 **I hope you all enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 32: Ex-Husband**

"Christopher." Lorelai said as she pulled away from his embrace. "Oh no Luke." She said as she saw his truck. She pushed past Christopher and headed towards Luke's truck.

He had gotten out but looked like he was going to get back in at any minute.

"Luke."

"Who's that?" He pointed to Christopher.

"That's Christopher." Lorelai said nervously. Christopher watched from the front porch.

"You're ex-husband?" Luke remembered.

"Yes."

"Do you always kiss your ex-husband?" Luke didn't mean to sound so harsh.

"I never see my ex-husband." Lorelai told him. "And I didn't kiss him. He kissed me."

"Hi." Christopher joined them. "Am I interrupting something?" He said smugly.

"Yes." Lorelai said.

"No. I was just going." Luke opened the truck door.

"Luke." She touched his arm, but he pushed away.

"It's okay. You two need to catch up. I'll see you later." He sadly got into his truck.

"Luke." Lorelai said sadly as she watched him drive away.

"Who was that?"

Lorelai glared at him. "I don't think that is any of your business." She walked passed him.

"Is he your boyfriend?"

"Why did you kiss me?" She avoided his question.

"I missed you."

"That's no reason to kiss your ex-wife."

Christopher scrunched his eyes. "Oh come on Lor. You know how much I hate the sound of that."

"It's the truth."

"Come on." He touched her shoulder, but she pushed away from him. "Don't be like that."

"I can't believe you are here." She was furious with him. He had ruined what was supposed to be a nice evening with Luke.

"Dad." Ryan walked outside after hearing voices.

"Hey buddy." Christopher ran towards his son, surprising both Ryan and Lorelai.

"What are you doing here?" Ryan was shocked to see his dad.

"I got some time off of work. I wanted to see my kids and your mother."

Lorelai rolled her eyes out of Ryan and Christopher's sight.

"Rory." Ryan called out to his sister.

"Dad." Rory stood in disbelief.

"Hey kiddo." Christopher hugged his daughter.

"I can't believe you are here. How did you know where we lived?"

"This is a small town. I asked some guy where the Gilmore's lived and he pointed me in the right direction." Christopher told them. "This is a great house."

"Do you want the tour?" Ryan asked. "I have my own room. The girls have to share."

"Rub it in why don't you." Rory remarked.

Ryan shrugged and smiled.

"I'd love a tour." Ryan took his dad inside.

Rory looked at her mother. Lorelai finally made her way to the porch. "Are you okay? What about your date with Luke?" Rory remembered.

"It's off." Lorelai said sadly. She needed to talk to Luke.

"I'm sorry mom."

"It's okay. We should get inside." Lorelai pointed to the door.

Rory could tell her mom was not happy about the situation, and Rory wasn't sure how she was supposed to feel. She was surprised. She was happy. She was frustrated. She was mostly confused.

Christopher and Ryan made their way downstairs. "This really is a great house."

"It isn't as big as our house in Hartford." Ryan noted. "But we like it."

"I like it too. This seems like a pretty cool town."

"It's definitely different." Ryan thought. "It gets better once you get used to it. Everyone in town is pretty nice. They are also pretty nosy."

"Not much different than the Hartford Housewives."

"Oh mom hated them."

"I know."

"Did you enjoy the tour?" Lorelai asked.

"Yeah." Christopher was looking around.

"What ya looking for, dad?" Rory asked.

"Well I know it has been a while." He said with his hands on his hips. "But the last time I checked you and I had three kids." He looked at Lorelai. "I know she is small, but I remember her being pretty chatty.

"She's at a friend's house."

"Oh."

"I can call Sookie." Lorelai told him.

"What's a Sookie?"

"Sookie is mom's best friend."

"You have a best friend?"

Lorelai didn't say anything.

"She has a little boy about Ruby's age."

Lorelai walked out of the room to call Sookie.

"That's cool." Christopher smiled. He was happy to see that his kids were doing well. "So guys I got you something."

"Really?" Ryan and Rory joined him on the couch.

"I thought that the two of you could use one of these." He pulled two cell phones out of his bag.

"What?"

"Wow."

They were both surprised.

"This way we will be able to keep up with each other. There aren't very many minutes on it, but you can call me anytime you need to talk."

"Cool." Ryan looked at the phone.

"What's that?" Lorelai pointed to the phones.

"Dad got us phones." Rory told her. She could tell her mom wasn't happy about it.

"Really." Lorelai stared at Christopher.

"They should only call the two of us." Christopher stood up.

"Did you get one for Ruby too? I'm sure she won't know how to use it." Lorelai said sarcastically.

"I got Ruby a doll."

"Oh well that's nice. Not as good as a cellphone. She is going to be a little disappointed." Lorelai responded.

Christopher didn't know what to say.

"How long are you going to be here?" Rory asked.

"For a couple of days."

"Are you staying here with us?" Ryan asked.

Christopher looked up at Lorelai, who was shaking her head. "No. I was hoping to find a nice hotel." That was a lie. He had hoped to stay with his family.

"Mom works at the Independence Inn. Do you have a room available?" Rory asked her mom.

"I can call Mia. I'm sure we can set you up with something." Lorelai told him. She would put him anywhere as long as he didn't have to stay with them. She was not happy about his surprise visit.

"Thanks. That sounds great." Christopher smiled at her.

"Hey kids." Lorelai grabbed her purse. "Why don't you two go get some dinner?"

"We can call it in." Ryan said.

"I'd like you to go pick it up." Lorelai told him.

"But."

"She wants to talk to dad." Rory informed him.

"I'm the Queen of subtlety." Lorelai shrugged.

"Okay. We got it." Ryan took her money. "We will be back soon, dad."

"See ya." Rory followed her brother out.

"Okay. I know that face. You are about to yell at me."

"Why in the hell did you buy them cell phones? I barely have a cell phone." She had been holding that in since the moment she saw the phones. "That's something you should have discussed with me."

"I wanted an easy way to get in touch with them."

"We both know that is bullshit."

"Lorelai."

Lorelai shook her head and sighed. "I can't believe you would do this. It is something that we should have discussed."

"I'm sorry."

"Yeah."

"Lorelai. I want to talk to them more."

"We have a phone that works great most days. Sometimes the call goes to the wrong house but eventually you will get through." Lorelai threw her hands in the air. "They didn't need cell phones."

"I'll take them back."

"And then I will still be the bad guy." Lorelai told him. He just didn't get it. He never got it.

"I'm sorry." He said again. "I should have talked to you about it first. I didn't think it would be that big of a deal."

"You never do." Lorelai sat on the couch. "I'm the one that is here. I'm the one that is going to have to monitor their usage."

Christopher didn't say anything. He knew that she was right.

Lorelai sighed. This was not how she thought her night was going to go.

"I miss them. I miss you." Christopher said honestly.

Lorelai just looked at him.

"I realized how much I have missed. I don't want to miss anymore."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm thinking about buying property around here. I want to have a bigger part in their lives."

Lorelai was shocked.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking a lot about the mistakes I've made, and the biggest one was letting you and the kids go. I should have fought for the four of you."

"You should have been there for us. You were never there for us." Lorelai told him.

"I know. I'm sorry, Lorelai. I don't think I could ever say that enough."

"No. You won't ever be able to say it enough." It was the truth. Their ship had sailed.

"I want to try." Christopher said as they heard a knock on the door and then Sookie and Ruby came in.

"Lorelai." Sookie said.

"Mommy." Ruby ran in.

"Hey Rubear." Christopher was happy to see his little girl. He held out his arms. She wasn't sure what to do. She ran past her daddy and into the arms of Lorelai.

"Hey baby." Lorelai hugged her. "Did you see that your daddy is here?" She pointed to Christopher.

Ruby didn't say anything. She just looked at her mommy.

"Go give your daddy a hug." Lorelai encouraged her.

"Okay." Ruby walked slowly to her father and gave him a hug.

"You have gotten so big."

"I'm little." Ruby said quickly.

"Yeah." Christopher gave her another hug and then turned to his bag. "I got you something." He handed her the doll.

"Oh cool." She looked at her mom. "Can I open it?"

"Sure sweetie. Go ahead." Lorelai looked at Sookie. "Christopher, this is Sookie. Sookie this is Christopher."

"Nice to meet you." Christopher shook her hand.

"Yeah nice to meet you." Sookie said. "I should probably get home to Davey and Jackson."

"Sure I will walk you out. I'll be right back hon." She told Ruby.

"Here sweetie. I'll help you with your dolly." Christopher told her.

Lorelai walked outside with Sookie. "What the hell is he doing here?"

Lorelai shrugged. "Ruining my life."

"No Luke?"

"Christopher kissed me."

"What?"

"Yeah. He kissed me. Luke saw it. He was so hurt. I don't blame him."

"Oh no. Lorelai. I'm so sorry."

"I've got to talk to Luke."

"How long is Christopher staying?" Sookie asked.

"He made it sound like he was going to be here for a while." Lorelai said sadly.

Sookie shook her head. "You'll figure it out. You'll fix things with Luke."

"I don't know. I hope I can."

Sookie gave her a hug. "He is an attractive man. I can totally see what you saw in him."

"That's not helping." Lorelai told her.

"Sorry."

* * *

After the kids had gotten back to the house with Chinese, Lorelai told them she needed to run an errand. She had called Mia and Christopher could check-in when he was ready.

Lorelai needed to talk to Luke. The diner was closed, but she could see Luke sitting inside drinking a beer and watching the tiny TV.

She tapped on the door. He looked at her, sat his beer down, and walked to the door. He unlocked the door and walked away without saying anything.

"Luke." Lorelai walked into the diner. "You have to let me explain what you saw."

"There is nothing you have to explain to me." Luke sat back down.

"Luke please don't be like that. That kiss was nothing."

"A kiss is always something."

"Not that one. I promise. He took me by surprise. I didn't know he was coming."

"It is okay, Lorelai." Luke said coldly. "I get it."

"No. You don't get it. I'm trying to tell you that it was nothing." Lorelai sighed "I was so excited about our date." Lorelai hoped he knew that she meant it. "I still am."

Luke looked up at her. "How long is he going to be here?"

"I don't know." She wasn't sure. "He just showed up. I had no idea he was coming. I haven't seen him in so long. Luke, you've got to believe me." She felt like she was begging him.

"I do believe you." Luke sighed. "I don't really want to talk about this right now."

"Oh."

"I think we should wait until he leaves."

"Okay." Lorelai touched his shoulder. "We are going to have our date." She told him. "I know you are upset now. You have every right to be."

"I'm not upset." Luke lied. "It is no big deal. It wasn't like we were in any kind of relationship."

"Right." Lorelai closed her eyes. "Fine. If you are going to act like this maybe it's best that we didn't go out on a date." She shook her head. She didn't mean it, but thought she needed to say it. She walked out of the door.

Luke dropped his head. He knew he overreacted, but he was worried that Christopher would always be a problem for them.

Lorelai headed home with tears in her eyes. Things had not turned out the way she had hoped, and she was beginning to think that she was not going to get that date with Luke after all.

* * *

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	33. Best Place for Coffee

**I wanted to get this up sooner rather than later. I hope I didn't lose too many readers with the last chapter. I hope you all keep reading and don't lose faith in me. I have a plan but all good plans take time. Remember I am a huge Luke and Lorelai fan!**

 **Thanks again for all the support!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 33: Best Place for Coffee**

"Good morning my angels." Lorelai said as she walked into the kitchen. Her teenagers were sitting at the table eating breakfast. Ruby had spent the night, yet again, with Sookie. Lorelai was beginning to think she liked Sookie better than her.

A few days had passed since Christopher had arrived in town, and much to her surprise, he was still there. He was staying at the Inn, and Lorelai was sure that Mia and Michel were keeping a very close eye on him. He had also spent a lot of time with the kids, which was good, but she was afraid they were going to get their hopes up and he was going to hurt them, like always.

"Hey mom." Rory looked up from her cereal. "Could you proof my history paper?"

Ryan kicked at her under the table.

"Hey." She gave him a look.

Lorelai poured herself a cup of coffee. "Sure sweets. When is it due?"

"Tomorrow."

Ryan kicked at her again, getting another scowl from Rory.

"I will take a look it. I'll get Mia to look at it too." Lorelai thought about it for a minute and turned towards Ryan. "I can proof yours too. I know you have that class with Rory."

"You don't have too." He said quickly.

"I know I don't have too. I want too." Lorelai said realizing her son was up to something.

"It's okay. I don't think I need you to proof mine. I think it is perfect."

Lorelai walked over to the table and cornered her son. "I want to see your paper."

Ryan sighed. He knew he had been caught. "I haven't finished it yet."

"You can give me what you have finished."

Ryan rolled his eyes. Rory smiled at her brother. She knew he was struggling, and there was nothing she could do to help. She walked into her bedroom.

"Mom."

"Ryan." She crossed her arms. "You haven't started your paper, have you?" She asked sternly.

Ryan dropped his head.

"How long does your paper have to be?"

"Five pages."

"Ryan, how long have you known about this paper?" Lorelai was frustrated. "Don't lie to me. I can always just ask your sister."

"A little over a week."

"Ryan Gilmore." Lorelai sighed. "You are coming home right after school. I'll meet you here. You aren't doing anything until you finish that paper."

"Mom, I was planning on hanging out with Dad. I don't know how long he is going to be here."

"I don't care. You are to come right home. I mean it. I can't believe you have waited until the last minute on this." Lorelai was frustrated with her son.

"Mom." Ryan sighed.

"I don't want to hear it." Lorelai took a drink of her coffee.

"Here mom." Rory handed her mom her paper. "Thank you."

"Thanks a lot, Rory." Ryan glared at his sister.

"How was I supposed to know that you haven't started on your paper?" Rory grabbed her bags and walked out of the room.

Ryan grabbed his things. This sucked. He wanted to spend as much time as he could with his dad. He didn't know when he would get to see him again.

* * *

"Hi, Luke." Mia said as she walked into the diner and sat down at the counter.

"Hi. Mia." Luke looked up at her. "Can I get you a coffee?"

"Do you have a minute?" Mia asked, ignoring his question about coffee.

Luke sighed. He knew what she wanted to talk about. "Not to be disrespectful, but I'm a little busy here, Mia."

"Oh Luke. You have always made time for me." She pointed around the diner. "It looks like everyone has what they need."

Luke couldn't counter with her, so he pointed to the side.

"I want to talk to you about Lorelai." Lorelai had told Mia everything, and Mia had been upset that Luke reacted that way. She knew that he just needed a push in the right direction.

Luke nodded.

"I know that I shouldn't interfere. It is really none of my business."

Luke nodded again. That was true, but he wasn't going to say it.

"You have nothing to worry about when it comes to Christopher. Lorelai doesn't have any feelings for the man."

"He is her ex-husband." Luke noted. "They will always have a connection."

"Ex being the key word. She doesn't want to get back together with the man. She wants to get to know you. You know that is true."

"She said that?"

Mia nodded. "Of course she said that. She really likes you Luke. I would hate for you to screw it up because you are jealous."

"I'm not jealous."

"Yes you are." Mia said plainly. "You are extremely jealous. That is perfectly normal. But you should know that you have no reason to be jealous. Lorelai divorced Christopher for a reason."

Luke didn't know what to say. He was still upset about what he saw. He knew he shouldn't be. He knew that he should trust Lorelai.

"If your mother were here she would tell you that you are being stubborn. She always said that you were more stubborn than your father, and he was one of the most stubborn men I knew. Trust me Luke, you don't want to let her get away. She is one of a kind." She gave him a sympathetic rub on the shoulder and smiled. "You know that I'm right, and you should listen to me. I've been around for a while Luke. I know what I am talking about."

Luke sighed. He was left with a lot to think about.

* * *

"He is still here?" Sookie asked Lorelai as she poured her a cup of coffee. "Here." She handed the cup to Lorelai. "I can't believe he hasn't left yet."

"Me either. He has never stayed very long." Lorelai told her as she sat down on the stool. "For example, when I had Ruby, he only took two weeks off, and even then he was working from home. Maybe he is really changing."

"That's doubtful." Sookie replied.

Lorelai gave her a look.

"I know I don't know him, but I feel like I know him by everything you have told me about him."

"The kids are happy to have him here. I just don't want them to get their hopes up. That's always my worry."

"What about Luke? What are you going to do about him?"

Lorelai shook her head. "I don't think there is anything that I can do about Luke. He pretty much took the situation out of my hands."

"That's not true."

Lorelai nodded. "He said we could talk after Christopher left, but I got the idea that he was over it before it even really started."

"I'm sorry, Lorelai. I feel like this is all my fault."

Lorelai shook her head. "It isn't your fault. It isn't even really Christopher's fault. Sometimes people are just meant to be friends."

"But." Sookie wanted to interject.

"It's okay. I'm fine." Lorelai lied. She wasn't okay, but she knew she would be. Luke was right they weren't in a relationship, and maybe that was for the best. At least that is what she would tell herself in order to feel better.

* * *

"Why didn't you tell me that you and Lane kissed?" Jess asked Ryan as they sat down for lunch.

Ryan looked around but didn't see the girls. "I don't know. We kissed. I thought maybe we would date or whatever you are supposed to do after you kiss. We talked. We decided to remain friends."

"Is that what you want?" Jess couldn't tell either way.

Ryan nodded. "I think it is for the best. Lane and Rory are best friends. Mrs. Kim is crazy strict. It would never work out."

"So you wouldn't date one of Rory's friends?"

"Why?" Ryan wondered.

"No reason."

"Yeah. There is a reason you asked."

"I think Grace likes you." Jess told her. "Actually I know that she likes you."

"Really? Grace?"

Jess nodded. "Yep. But if you won't date Lane then that means you won't date Grace."

Ryan thought about it. "I don't know. Rory and Grace aren't best friends. That's the difference."

"Player, Player." Jess joked with him.

"I guess you never know." Ryan was knew to the whole dating thing. He was only fifteen, and he had never had a girlfriend before, besides fake elementary girlfriends.

* * *

Rory, Lane, and Grace were walking down the hallway. "Lane, we don't have to talk about it again." Rory told her. They had already talked about Ryan and the kiss many times before.

"I think we made the right decision." Lane said.

"Why aren't you going to date?" Grace asked.

"We agreed it was for the best. We are better as friends. Besides my mama is never going to let me date anyone, ever."

"Oh."

"And it would be weird if I dated Rory's brother. She is my best friend." Lane continued.

"Right." Grace looked at Rory. "Is that how you feel?"

"It would be a little weird." Rory admitted.

Grace sighed quietly. She had a feeling Rory wouldn't want her to like Ryan either.

* * *

Things had slowed down at the diner, and Luke couldn't help but think about Lorelai. She hadn't been by the last few days. He knew it had to do with their last conversation. Luke knew he had been too harsh, but he couldn't stop thinking about the kiss he had witnessed. It seemed passionate. Like two people who belonged together. But he remembered all of their conversations. He knew that Lorelai didn't have feelings for Christopher, but then again he wasn't so sure. His mind kept running back and forth.

And it wasn't helped when a barely familiar face entered his diner.

Christopher.

Why the hell was he there? Luke thought to himself.

"Hi." Christopher smiled smugly at him. "I heard this was the best place in town to get a cup of coffee."

"I guess so." Luke said as he grabbed the coffee pot. "For here or to go."

"To go." Christopher walked further into the diner, sitting at the counter. "This is a nice place."

"Thank you." Luke poured him a cup of coffee.

Christopher took a sip. "Rory was right. This is really good. I should have known. The Gilmores love coffee."

"Yep." Luke was ready for him to go. "Anything else, I can get you?"

"Oh no. I'm just picking up my son. We are going to have a father-son afternoon."

"Okay." Luke shrugged. It made him mad to hear Christopher talk about his kids. Luke felt protective of those kids and of Lorelai, but they weren't his to be protective of. "How long are you in town?" Luke finally asked.

Christopher smiled. "I'm hoping to be around for a while. I know it took me a while, but I realized that my family needs me. My wife needs me."

"Ex-wife." Luke reminded him.

"Yeah well maybe not for long. I'm hoping to right that wrong. I hope you'll understand that."

Luke rolled his eyes. He really hated the guy. And in that moment he got the clarity that he needed. Christopher was exactly the person that Lorelai had described. He was manipulative, but Luke decided he wasn't going to be manipulated by this man.

"I really like Stars Hollow." He held up his coffee. "And this coffee. Thanks Luke."

"I'm glad that you are here." Luke told him. "Your kids need you. I hope that you remember that before you walk back out of their lives."

"I'm not going anywhere."

Luke shook his head. "We both know that's probably not true, but just know that whether you are around or not I'm going to be here for them because I care about them."

"You've only known them for a couple of months."

"Yeah. And I probably know them a lot better than you do. That's the real shame here." Luke walked closer to Christopher. "You should want to be here for your kids."

"And Lorelai."

"Lorelai doesn't need you. She never has." Luke walked back around the counter.

"We will see about that."

"We sure will." Luke gave him a half smile. Christopher walked out of the diner. Luke was so mad at himself. He couldn't believe what a jerk he had been to Lorelai. He hoped that she would forgive him.

* * *

Christopher made his way to the high school. "Hey kid, you ready?" He said once he saw his son walking out of the school.

"Oh hey dad. I don't…"

"I found an arcade right out of town. I thought it would be fun. You can see if you can beat your old man."

Ryan smiled. His mom would understand. He would write his report once they were finished. "Sure. I'm totally going to kick your butt."

"We will see about that." Christopher laughed.

* * *

Lorelai and Ruby walked into the house. "Okay sweetie, you can go get a pop tart."

"Why didn't we go to the diner? I wanted a chocolate milkshake."

"Not today."

"Are you fighting with Luke?"

"No. Of course not." They weren't fighting so that wasn't a lie.

"I'm really sad about my milkshake. You know it is my favorite part of the day." Ruby pouted.

"Your thighs will thank me one day." Lorelai smiled as she hugged her little girl.

"Tomorrow," Ruby said as she walked into the kitchen.

Lorelai looked at her watch. Ryan should be home soon. She still couldn't believe that he waited until the last minute to start his report.

* * *

 **I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. Let me know what you thought!**


	34. Figure it Out

**I am so thankful for you guys! I get so excited every time I get an email saying I have a review, favorite, and follower. I wanted to go ahead and get this posted because Chapter 35 is a pretty big chapter, and one of my favorites to write. I can't wait for you to read it.**

 **Hope you all enjoy this one! Unfortunately Christopher is still around.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 34: Figure it Out**

It was 9:00 p.m. Lorelai was sitting on the sofa. Her blood was boiling. She had tried to call Chris several times but to no avail. She also tried to call Ryan's new cell phone. He didn't answer either. What was the point of having a cell phone if you were never going to answer it? She had called Jess, and he had reluctantly confirmed that her son was with his father. She was so mad at him because she knew she would have to stay up late to make sure he finished the paper.

She heard the door open. Christopher and Ryan were chit chatting. Sounded like they had a wonderful time.

"Ryan." Lorelai said as she stood up trying to maintain her composure.

"Hey mom." Ryan tried to play it up.

"Hey Lor. Sorry we are late. I would have called, but my stupid cell phone died earlier." Christopher informed her.

"I didn't bring mine with me. I'm still getting used to having the thing." Ryan knew she was mad. He had expected it.

Lorelai looked at Christopher. "Did you know that Ryan has a history report due tomorrow morning, and he hasn't even started it yet?"

"No I didn't know that. Why didn't you tell me?" He asked his son.

"You didn't ask." Ryan said honestly.

"Ryan." Lorelai warned. She was not in the mood for his attitude.

"I'm sorry, Lorelai." Christopher meant it. "I just wanted to spend some time with my son."

"I have been waiting on you since school ended. I left work early for you." Lorelai told Ryan. "You knew you were supposed to come straight home. You also knew I would be worried when you didn't."

"I know. Mom, I'm sorry. I didn't think it would be that big of deal. I can write it pretty quickly."

"Yeah if you want to fail." Lorelai was furious. "Go upstairs and start on your paper. I need to talk to your father."

"Mom."

Lorelai pointed sternly. There were no words needed with the look on her face.

Ryan did as he was told.

Lorelai turned towards Christopher once she knew that Ryan was out of earshot.

"Don't look at me like that." Christopher told her. He knew that look all too well. "I hate when you look at me like that."

"What the hell were you thinking?" Lorelai shook her head and sighed heavily.

"Oh Lorelai. I wanted to spend some time with my kid." That was the truth.

"You should have talked to me first. You can't just roll into town and do whatever the hell you want especially where the kids are concerned. That's not what they need, and it isn't what I need." Lorelai told him. She didn't yell because she didn't want the kids to hear her, but she wanted to yell. "Ryan doesn't need a best friend. He needs a father. You should have called me and asked if you could take him out for guy's afternoon. Then you would have known about his paper."

"I'm sorry Lorelai. He didn't tell me."

"He wasn't going to tell you because he wanted to hang out with his dad. He knew I wouldn't let him go because I always have to be the bad guy. I'm the one that is here, Christopher. I'm the one that will be here when he comes home with a failing grade in history. I'm the one that will have to deal with it. Not you." Lorelai bit her bottom lip. "He has had some behavior issues lately. Between the divorce and the move and being a teenage boy. But we were moving past it. We finally found some common ground, and he was doing better. Now you roll into town and all that goes out the damn window."

"Come on Lore." He didn't know how to make this better. "He has plenty of time to finish his paper before the morning. Everything hasn't gone out the window. He is a good kid."

"Have you met your son? He isn't going to finish that paper unless someone is sitting by his side making him do it." Lorelai informed him. "But it isn't going to be me." Lorelai walked towards the stairs. "This is on you. You can help him this time. It is on you. I'm going to bed."

"But Lore. I don't know how…"

"Figure it out. That's what parenting is all about." Lorelai gave him a look before starting to walk upstairs. "He better get at least a B." She warned.

Christopher frowned. He knew he was in over his head, but he would figure it out. He would have to.

* * *

The next morning, Lorelai peered into Ryan's room to find that he wasn't in his bed. She walked downstairs and smiled at the sight. Christopher was asleep at the kitchen table. A place she had been many times since having children.

"Hey mom." Ryan was making the coffee. He desperately needed coffee.

"Hi."

"You want a cup?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

Lorelai nodded, still taking in the sight. She noticed Ryan's report was sitting on the table. "Did you finish?"

Ryan nodded. "Yeah. It's even a little longer than it has to be."

"Did you get any sleep?"

"A few hours." Ryan thought about it. It hadn't been very much.

"Your dad helped?"

"I did." Christopher said as he was waking up.

Lorelai was impressed. "Well I am glad that you got it done but that still doesn't excuse you…"

"I know mom. Dad talked to me about it." Ryan interrupted her. "I'm sorry."

"I think there should be consequences."

"So did I." Chris motioned for him to continue.

"Dad grounded me for the weekend." Ryan told a surprised Lorelai. Christopher had never punished the kids. "He also said that I had to help you at the Inn as part of my punishment."

"You know we could always use the help." Lorelai was completely surprised. She was actually glad she didn't have to be the bad guy for once.

"I'm going to go get ready for school."

Lorelai sat down across from Christopher. "I can't believe he finished this." She picked up the paper.

"I can't believe how hard it was to get him to finish it. He was all over the place."

"That sounds just like Ryan. He has never been one for school." Lorelai told him as she sipped her coffee. "He is however very good at making coffee."

Christopher stood up to get himself a cup.

"And I can't believe you grounded him."

Christopher turned around. "Me either. We were talking, and it felt like it was what I was supposed to do. I tried to think back to when my parents did it to me."

"I'm impressed."

"Thanks."

"Also impressed about having him work at the Inn."

"Teaches responsibility, right?" Christopher smiled. He was pretty proud of himself.

"Yeah. He is learning a lot of responsibility by working at the diner."

"The Diner?" Christopher questioned. There was only one diner he could think of.

"Luke's Diner. He works there a few times a week."

"Oh."

"It has been really good for him." She pointed to her coffee. "And me." She added. "I think that is where he learned how to make such a brilliant cup of coffee."

"Right." Christopher felt bad. He had a feeling Luke was trying to take over his family. "Listen, Lorelai I want you to know that I'm serious this time. I plan to be here for you and the kids. I know that I should have stepped up a long time ago."

Lorelai smiled, intently. "Christopher. That makes me happy. I'm glad that you are going to be here for the kids. They need you."

"And you."

"Not me." Lorelai stood up. "We are always going to be connected because we are parents to three great kids, but that's all we are going to be. I'm happy with my new life."

Christopher nodded. "With Luke." He knew he shouldn't have said it.

"I'm not with Luke." Lorelai told him calmly. "But even if I were that wouldn't be any of your business."

"Okay. I get it."

Lorelai hugged him. "But I am really glad that you are making an effort with the kids. It's hard doing this alone. I'm happy to have the help."

Christopher sighed.

"I better go get ready."

Christopher knew that he had made so many mistakes in his relationship with Lorelai, but he was hoping that he could fix it. He needed to fix things. He hoped that she still loved him because once she found out the real reason he was in town, she was going to hate him.

* * *

"I can't believe you are happy about being grounded." Jess said as he and Ryan sat down in class.

"I'm not happy about being grounded. But my dad grounded me. He has never done that before." Ryan told him. "Maybe this means he is really trying now."

"Because he grounded you?"

"Yeah. Maybe he means it when he says he is going to stick around."

"Do you want him to get back together with your mom?" Jess asked, curiously.

Ryan shook his head. "No. I just want to have my dad in my life."

Jess nodded. He understood the feeling.

* * *

"So you haven't talked to Luke?" Sookie asked Lorelai as she poured her a cup of coffee.

Lorelai shook her head and took the coffee from Sookie. "Thank you."

"Are you going to talk to him?"

"He said after Christopher left."

"When is Christopher going to leave?" Sookie was becoming impatient.

"I don't know. It sounds like he is going to stick around for a while."

"You're okay with that?" Sookie wondered.

"I guess so. Ryan is really happy to have his dad around and so are the girls." Lorelai smiled. "It is too late for the two of us, but it isn't too late for him and the kids. I want them to have a relationship."

"But the two of you are done?"

Lorelai nodded. "Yes. We got a divorce for a reason."

"And you and Luke?" Sookie didn't mean to pry, but she needed to know what was going to happen. She knew they were meant to be together. It was her instinct.

Lorelai shrugged. "I don't know, Sookie. I think Luke would like to stay away from all my baggage."

"Oh Lorelai. I think Luke really likes you."

"I don't know." Was all that Lorelai could say. "I just need to worry about one thing at a time."

Sookie nodded. She just wanted her friend to be happy. Lorelai deserved that, and she was afraid that Christopher was going to ruin it for her.

* * *

Luke walked out of Doose's. "Hey Luke."

"Oh hey Jackson." Luke kept walking. Jackson followed.

"You aren't still mad at me, are you?"

"Nope." Luke said quickly.

"You seem mad."

"I'm not mad. I'm in a hurry."

"Luke." Jackson stopped him. "I'm sorry about the whole setup. Sookie made me do it."

"I'm not mad." Luke told him again. "I've got to get these buns back to the diner."

"But Luke."

"Jackson. I'm not mad. The date with Lorelai was nice. She is a great person."

"Really? You had a good time."

Luke nodded. "Yes."

"So you are going to go out again?"

"I don't know."

"But you just said that you had a good time."

"We did have a good time. We had a very good time. But I was a jerk the other day, and she hasn't been back in the diner." Luke admitted. "Maybe we can figure things out once her ex-husband leaves town."

"Oh okay." Jackson smiled. That wasn't bad news.

"I hope you will keep that to yourself and not tell Sookie. At least for now." Luke knew he probably would tell her. They told each other everything.

On his way back to the diner, Luke glanced over to the gazebo to see Christopher playing with Ruby and Rory. They all looked happy, and Luke was positive he was making the right decision. Once Christopher left town, he would ask her out again. He cared about her, and he cared about the kids. He wasn't going to let Christopher get in the way of that, even if he was their father.

Christopher sat down on the bench and Rory joined him. Ruby was still running around. "That kid has a lot of energy."

"Tell me about it." Rory was out of breath. "I'm glad that we are getting to spend some time with you."

"Me too, kiddo. It means the world to me."

Rory smiled. She didn't realize how much she missed her dad until she actually spent time with him.

"I plan on sticking around."

"In Stars Hollow?"

Christopher nodded. "Yeah. I'd like to spend a lot of time here."

"What about your job?"

"I can split my time between places. I should have done a better job with that ages ago."

Rory nodded. She agreed with him.

"Stars Hollow is a strange little town, but you guys seem to like it a lot."

"Oh yeah. It is pretty great." Rory told him cheerfully. "I'm almost having second thoughts about going to Chilton."

"Oh yeah Chilton." Christopher gulped a little. They had been saving for that for years. "You don't want to go anymore?"

"I really like Stars Hollow High. I have some really great friends, and Ryan is there."

"Right. You could always stay. You don't have to go to Chilton."

"No. I want to go to Chilton." Rory admitted. "I've been planning to go for years. If I want to go to Harvard, then I need to go to Chilton."

"Rory you are the smartest teenager I've ever met. You don't need Chilton to get into Harvard."

"Thanks, dad, but I have to go to Chilton. Lane, Grace, and Jess will be my friends no matter which school I go too."

Christopher nodded. "You really are the smartest kid around."

Rory rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm glad you are here, dad."

"Me too." He smiled. He had made so many mistakes. He had so many regrets. He would never be able to take any of it back.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	35. That's Bull

**So this is the big chapter. Some stuff will be revealed. I definitely want to know what you think of this chapter.**

 **Thanks again for all the support! You all are the best!**

 **Enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 35: That's Bull**

"Independence Inn, Lorelai speaking." Lorelai answered the phone. Michel was out for the day so Lorelai was in charge of the front desk. "Let me check those dates for you." She picked up the calendar. "February 14th. Oh are you having a nice Valentine's Day weekend. I hear you. It is always nice to get away." Lorelai looked at the calendar. "You are lucky you called early. We only have one room available. It is a king suite. Thank you so much, Mrs. Harris. I have you down. I will send you confirmation. Thank you. Have a great day." Lorelai hung up the phone. She thought about past Valentine's Days. Christopher had always sent her flowers and the kids always made her the most precious cards. She and Christopher had never gone away to celebrate the day.

"Hey Lorelai. How's it going?" Mia asked.

"Great. We have had a lot of people call to book rooms."

"That is what I like to hear." Mia smiled at her. "So I wanted you to know that I have Ryan helping bus tables. I hope that is okay."

"That's perfect. He is here to do whatever you need him to do. It is part of his punishment."

"To be honest with you, he is a very good worker. You should punish him more often." Mia joked.

"I didn't punish him this time, but I will keep that in mind." Lorelai laughed.

"Christopher still here?"

Lorelai sighed. Mia and Sookie asked her that question every single day. "Yes. He still here and no I don't know when he is leaving."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't keep asking you." Mia touched her arm.

"It's okay Mia."

"As long as he stays the more money we make." Mia joked. Christopher was still staying at the Inn.

"That is true, and we're having lunch today with Ryan. I will make sure he pays."

"Good thinking." Mia smiled at her. "I knew I hired you for a reason."

Lorelai's cellphone rang. "Oh Mia I'm sorry."

"Go ahead take it. I'll cover the desk."

"Thank you." Lorelai grabbed her phone and walked into the hallway. "Hello this is Lorelai."

"Ms. Gilmore this is Frank Headings from First National Bank."

"Oh hi Mr. Headings. I haven't spoken with you in a while. Is everything okay?"

"I tried to contact your husband but he didn't answer."

"Oh Christopher and I aren't married anymore."

"Right, but the two of you have a joint savings account, correct?"

"Right. That's correct. It's an account for our kids."

"I'm calling you today to see if you would like to move what is left in the account to your regular checking account?"

"I'm sorry Mr. Headings, I don't understand what you are talking about." Lorelai was a little confused.

"Your ex-husband withdrew most of the money in the account a few weeks ago. We don't usually keep accounts open that have less than 500 dollars."

Lorelai's heart dropped. "How much money is left in the account?" She didn't think she really wanted to know.

"There is 200 dollars in the account."

"Oh my God." She was shocked. Tears were forming in her eyes. "Please move it to my account. I can give you my pin number."

Lorelai finished her conversation with Mr. Headings and hung up the phone. She could not believe that Christopher had taken all of that money out of their account. It was an account they had set up for the kids when they were born. Her parents had put money in the account numerous times over the years. That money was for their education. Lorelai couldn't believe this was happening. Why would Christopher do this to them?

* * *

Lane and Rory were at Lane's house in her bedroom. Lane was looking at one of Rory's teen magazines. Her mama never let her buy them so Rory would sneak them to her every now and then.

"So Lane." Rory started. "I don't know if we have ever talked about it before, but I'm planning on going to Chilton next year."

"Oh." Lane tried to hide her disappointment. "That's in Hartford, right?"

Rory nodded. "Yeah."

"That's a pretty fancy school."

Rory nodded again. "I've been planning on attending for a very long time."

"I think that is great, Rory."

"Really? I'm a little nervous about it." Rory admitted. "I'm going to miss you."

"You aren't moving back to Hartford are you?" Lane asked.

"Of course not."

"Then we will still get to see each other every day." Lane reassured her. "Nothing is going to change. We will still be best friends. You are pretty much stuck with me forever."

"Good. You are stuck with me too."

"And you shouldn't be nervous about applying. You are definitely going to get in."

"I'm a little worried."

"You have nothing to be worried about. You'll get in and then you can introduce me to all the super cute private school boys."

"What if they are all ugly?"

"No way. There are going to be some very cute boys, and this magazine will teach us everything we need to know."

"That's true. That's our teenage Bible."

"I like the way you think Gilmore." Lane laughed. She felt lucky to have a friend as great as Rory, and Rory felt the same way. Lane always knew how to make her feel better.

* * *

Lorelai was at the front desk waiting on Christopher to join her for lunch. She could feel her blood boiling. She felt like she could scream or cry or both at any minute. She still couldn't wrap her head around what he had done, and what it meant for their kids' futures.

Christopher walked in, and Mia rubbed Lorelai's back. "Go ahead. I'll cover the desk." Mia told her. Lorelai had to tell her what happened after Mia saw her so upset. Mia promised her that everything would be okay, but Lorelai didn't believe her.

"Hey Lore. You ready for lunch. I'm starving."

"I need to talk to you." Lorelai said as calmly as possible.

"We can talk over lunch."

"No. We can't." She said softly as she walked towards Mia's office, hoping Christopher would get the hint to follow her.

"What's wrong?" He was almost too afraid to ask, but he knew Lorelai well enough to know something was bothering her.

Lorelai stood by Mia's desk. Christopher followed her, but didn't shut the door all the way. "I got a call from the bank today." She stared.

"Oh no." Christopher grimaced.

"I guess it was lucky for me that they couldn't get you on the phone. Or else I would have never known the truth." She was still as calm as she could be. But she honestly felt like punching him in the face.

"I was going to tell you."

"When?"

"I was waiting for the right time."

"Oh God, Christopher." Her temper was rising. "You had ample opportunity to tell me. There was never going to be a right time."

"I didn't know how to tell you." Christopher told her honestly. "I was afraid."

"If you were so damn afraid, you shouldn't have done it in the first place." Lorelai yelled at him.

Outside in the hall, Ryan was passing by when he heard his mom yell. He was actually looking for her, but when he heard her yell, he decided not to go in, but to ease drop.

"You stole from our children."

Ryan was intrigued. What had he stolen?

"No. That's not what happened. I'm going to pay the money back. I just needed a loan."

"That's bullshit." Lorelai yelled again. "That was their money."

Ryan's eyes grew large. He had never heard his mom talk like that before.

"You've done this before and that was with less money. It is never just a loan with you. There was close to 50,000 dollars in that account. What the hell did you need with that much money?"

Christopher looked down not wanting to face her looks.

"Come on Chris. What did you need that ungodly amount of money for? Which by the way, a lot of that money came from my parents not from us."

Christopher sighed. "It was a really good investment. I'm sure I will be able to double it in no time. You have nothing to worry about. I'm going to return the money."

"Don't say that. I know you. We've been here before, too many times to count."

"I paid some of that money back."

"So what was it for?" Lorelai asked with her hands on her hips. "Are you gambling again? Because you promised me the last time would be the last time. I know we aren't married anymore, but you promised me you would stop."

"I'm not gambling."

Ryan continued to listen. He didn't know his dad was a gambler.

Lorelai threw her hands in the air. "Are you back with the girl you cheated on me with?"

Ryan was shocked.

"That's probably what it is, but which girl is it. There were so many."

"There were only three."

"Three. Listen to yourself. There shouldn't have been any. We were married. But that meant nothing to you." Lorelai snapped back. "You promised that would never happen again too."

"We aren't married."

"Right. We aren't. I don't care who you sleep with, but I do care that you stole from our kids. You know that Rory wants to go to Chilton. How the hell am I going to pay for that now?"

"It will be okay. I'll get the money back. I made a good investment."

"What investment?"

"I can't talk about it."

"You are such a filthy liar." Lorelai had tears in her eyes. "You didn't come here to see the kids or to see me. You came here to cover your tracks. You never do anything without a motive, and I'm the idiot that fell for it."

"Lorelai, I have changed. I want to be here for the kids."

"No." Lorelai shook her head. "Absolutely not."

"You can't keep me from the kids."

"I can't even look at you anymore, and I don't want the kids to know what you've done."

"Lorelai, we can figure this out." Christopher pleaded with her.

"No. I'm not going to do this with you anymore. I can't deal with it. I tried to overlook the gambling. I even overlooked the cheating. But this. This I will never be able to overlook. And the thing is I can't do anything about it because I was too stupid to take your damn name off of the account. I have been so naïve. But no more. Just go."

"What about the kids?"

Lorelai shrugged. "You got called away to business. They are used to it. It won't come as a surprise." Lorelai wiped away her tears. Christopher tried to console her. "Just go. Please."

"I'm so sorry. I promise I will fix this."

She shook her head. "Don't make promises you can't keep."

Christopher sighed and walked out of the room. Ryan made sure to hide out of his way. He didn't want his dad to know that he had overheard the conversation.

Lorelai wiped away her tears. She still couldn't wrap her mind around it. He still hadn't given her any answers. She was positive that he was involved in gambling again. He was addicted to making bad decisions. She took a few moments to collect herself before walking out of the door.

Her heart turned when she saw Ryan standing in the hallway. By the look on his face, she knew that he must have overheard their conversation. "Ryan."

"Are you ready for lunch? I'm starving." Ryan smiled at his mother.

She smiled back at him. "That sounds like a great idea." She wrapped her arm around his shoulder. "Do you think Sookie will cook me a hamburger? I want a really big hamburger and some chili fries."

"I think Sookie would cook you anything you wanted within reason."

"Maybe she will make us some of that amazing homemade ice cream. I could really use some of that ice cream."

"Me too." In that moment, Ryan grew to appreciate his mother even more.

* * *

Later that night, the Gilmore's had eaten dinner, and they were doing their part in cleaning the kitchen.

"I can't believe dad didn't say goodbye." Rory said.

Lorelai told the kids that Christopher got an emergency call from work and had to leave immediately.

"You know how it can be." Lorelai said as she put a few dishes in the sink.

"I thought he had changed. He seemed like he was changing." Rory kept going. Lorelai wished she would stop. She didn't want to talk about it. She didn't want her to know the truth, but she hated lying to her.

"Dad is dad, Ror. His job is important to him. You know that. I know that. And he knows that."

Rory sighed. "Yeah I guess so. I could probably call him tomorrow. I have his number in my phone."

"Oh yeah." Ryan walked to his backpack and pulled out his cellphone. "Here mom."

"What's this for?" Lorelai asked.

"I don't want it anymore."

"Oh."

"Why not?" Rory asked.

"If I want to talk to dad I can call him from home." Ryan told her.

Lorelai took the cellphone.

"You are right." Rory said as she found her phone. "I feel kind of weird having this anyways. None of my friends have one."

"Okay. I'll tell your dad he can turn them off." Lorelai held the phones. She wasn't going to tell Christopher anything. He could figure it out all on his own.

"Thanks." Ryan said as he walked out of the room and upstairs.

"I guess dad will never change." Rory said as she walked into her room.

"It doesn't matter, mommy." Ruby chimed in. "As long as we have you then everything is okay." Ruby gave her mom a big hug. Lorelai smiled. Ruby was right. Everything was going to be okay.

* * *

Later that night, Lorelai walked upstairs and stared at her son's door. She tapped on it lightly.

"Come in."

She heard him say. She walked in to see him sitting on his bed. He wasn't reading like normal. He was just sitting there. "What ya doing?"

"Nothing."

Lorelai nodded and walked over to his bed. She sat down on the edge. "You want to come downstairs and watch a movie. I can't promise it will be something you will like."

"Ruby?" He asked.

Lorelai nodded. "Probably going to be something with ponies and rainbows." She laughed.

"I'm grounded remember. That means no TV." Ryan reminded her.

"Oh I think you've learned your lesson." Lorelai patted his knee.

Ryan shook his head. "It's okay mom. Dad said I was grounded the rest of the weekend."

"Yeah but…"

"It's okay, mom." Ryan told her.

Lorelai nodded. "You know Ryan about today."

"Mom. Really. It is okay. I get it."

"But Ryan." Lorelai knew they should talk about it.

"You are all that I need, mom." Ryan smiled at her.

Lorelai could feel the tears forming. "Thanks hon." Lorelai couldn't stop herself. She gave him a hug. "I love you so much." She stood up and walked to the door. "If you change your mind we will be downstairs."

"I love you too, mom." Ryan told her.

Lorelai felt her heart melt. "Goodnight, sweets." Lorelai closed the door. It had been a really long day, and she had a lot on her mind. She didn't know how she was going to fix what Christopher had done. Rory seemed happy at Stars Hollow High. Maybe she had changed her mind about going to Chilton. Lorelai didn't want to disappoint her daughter.

* * *

 **Okay so please let me know what you thought! Had you figured it out! I tried to throw some hints in there along the way.**


	36. Richard

**Thank you all so much for the reviews! They make me happy! This is sort of a filler chapter, but Richard makes an appearance. I hope you all enjoy.**

 **And if you are as big of a Lauren Graham fan as I am, she got a new show! Yay for her! So excited!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 36: Richard**

A week had passed since Christopher left town. He had tried to call Lorelai a few times, but she didn't answer or call him back. She wasn't ready to talk to him. She didn't trust anything that came out of his mouth. She deleted all of his voicemails without ever even listening to them. She couldn't take anymore lies.

Things had gotten back to normal. Everything except Lorelai and Luke. She still hadn't gone back into the diner. She didn't know what to say to Luke or where they stood. She just needed some time to figure things out.

"Mom," Rory walked into the kitchen. "I swept the living room." Rory put the broom away. "I don't think Grandpa will notice if the floor is dirty."

"Oh but he will. Your grandpa notices everything. Always. He will pick this house apart. He will tell me how small it is and how much nicer our home in Hartford was. He will also tell me that I should hire a maid, and then he will proceed to hire one for me."

"Why did you invite him here if you are so worried about what he is going to think?" Rory asked honestly.

"He asked to come. I didn't want to say no. He is trying."

"Then maybe you have nothing to worry about."

"Rory."

"Mom. I'm tired of cleaning."

"Okay."

"Alright lovelies." They heard Sookie's voice. "I've got some casseroles."

"Oh Sookie." Lorelai greeted her and took some things out of her hands. "You are saving my life."

"Sookie." Ruby walked into the kitchen. "Where is Davey?"

"He is with his daddy."

"Can I go play with Davey?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No. Hon. Your grandpa is coming."

"So. I can't play with grandpa." She said with her hands on her hips.

"Yes you can. He is good at playing."

Ruby gave her a look before running off.

"Kids are the best." Sookie said.

"This food is the best." Lorelai smelled it. "It smells great."

"I hope it is everything you wanted."

"It is perfect Sookie. Thank you." Lorelai was so glad to have Sookie as her best friend.

"Are you nervous?" Sookie asked her.

"No." Lorelai lied. "I'm good. It's just my dad."

"He is going to see your house."

"I know."

"Today."

"I know."

"He…"

"Okay Sookie. I get it. Everything will be okay. My dad is trying."

"I know. Sorry. Do you need anything else?"

"I think everything will be perfect once Ryan gets back with the paper towels."

"I could have brought you some."

"Ryan wanted to go get them. He insisted."

* * *

Ryan and Grace were walking out of Doose's. He had a bag with the paper towels in his hands. "So when do you have to get home?"

"Soon. My mom will come looking for me. My grandpa will be there soon."

"That will be fun."

"I don't know." Ryan sighed. "I've never really understood my grandfather. I've always been the outcast of the family."

"You? No way." Grace hit his shoulder. "I don't think you could ever be an outcast."

"Oh yes. I'm not perfect like Rory." Ryan admitted. "But that's okay. My mom likes me just the way I am."

Grace laughed.

"I know. I just used the mommy card. I'm real cool."

"I think you are pretty cool."

"So Jess was right when he said that you liked me?" Ryan slipped that in there.

Grace could feel her face becoming flushed. "Jess told you."

Ryan nodded.

"I know you like Lane."

"Lane and I decided to be friends."

"But you do like her."

"Yes. I like Lane. But we are better as friends."

"Because she is best friends with your sister."

Ryan nodded. "And her mom is extremely strict. It would never work out."

"Oh."

"I like you too, Grace."

"I'm also friends with your sister."

"Right."

"I like being friends with your sister."

"I know."

"But I also like you a lot." Grace smiled at him. "So maybe we can just see what happens."

"I'd like that a lot."

"Good. Me too." Grace touched his shoulder.

"I should get this back home. My mom will send a search party."

"Okay. Have fun with your grandfather and don't worry about what he thinks. You are a great guy."

"Thanks, Grace. See you later."

"See ya."

Ryan smiled as he walked away. He liked Grace. She was a very nice girl, and he hoped Rory wouldn't interfere this time.

* * *

"Why did you bring me here?" Jess asked as he walked into the cabin with his uncle. "It's freezing outside. It isn't like we are going to be able to fish."

"I needed to check on the cabin. I figured the two of us could fix a few things while we were here."

Jess sighed heavily.

"It isn't going to hurt you to spend one day with me."

"I didn't say that." Jess sat down on the couch. "I should probably be at home studying for winter finals."

"Are you kidding me?" Luke chuckled. "Did you really say that with a straight face?"

"Yes. Yes I did." A smile slid across his face.

"Lightening is about to strike." Luke joked. "We won't be here long. I never take a day off, and I thought it would be nice to be here for a little while. Get away from things."

"You mean Lorelai." Jess countered.

"No." Luke said quickly. "I'm not trying to get away from Lorelai."

"You have seemed sad lately."

"I'm not sad."

"You really like her." Jess stood up next to his uncle. "I know you like her."

"Yes I like Lorelai, but I'm giving her space while her ex-husband is here."

"He isn't here."

"What?"

"He isn't here. He left last week."

"Really?" Luke was surprised. Lorelai hadn't been in the diner. The kids had been coming in without her. Luke was sure she would return once Christopher left.

Jess nodded. "Yeah."

"Oh. I didn't know."

"I figured that you didn't."

"Do you want to know some more gossip?" Jess asked.

"What kind of gossip?" Luke was surprisingly interested.

"Ryan told me it is a secret. So you can't say anything."

"Maybe you shouldn't tell me."

"If that's what you want." Jess as he walked away.

"Wait. You can tell me." Luke stopped him. Maybe he did want to know. "You know I'm not going to say anything."

"Ryan's dad took a lot of money out of Ryan and Rory's savings account. A whole lot of money. And he didn't say what it was for, but Lorelai accused him of gambling or giving it to one of his mistresses."

"Really?" Luke was surprised and mad at Christopher.

"Yeah. She was extremely mad and told him to leave and never come back. She doesn't want Rory and Ruby to know."

"But she told Ryan?" Luke was confused.

"He overheard the screaming match."

"Oh."

"Uncle Luke you should talk to her."

"I don't know."

"If you like her then you should talk to her before it is too late." Jess said, pretty smart for a sixteen year old.

Luke thought about it. "Come on. Let's get some work done."

"Whatever you say Uncle Luke." He hoped his uncle didn't ruin it.

Luke hoped the same thing.

* * *

"This is wonderful, Lorelai. I didn't realize how well you could cook." Richard said as he took another bite of his food.

"Ha. Ha." Ryan snickered.

Lorelai shot him a look.

"What was that Ryan?"

"Oh nothing."

"Dad, I didn't cook this. Our chef at the Inn prepared the meal for us." Lorelai decided to be honest.

"Well you tell her we will hire her to cater our events. Your mother would love this." Richard took another bite.

Rory looked at her mother to see how she felt about the 'mother' comment. Lorelai just smiled at her daughter. She was expecting her father to bring up her mother eventually.

"So tell me you two, how is school?" He directed his question to Ryan and Rory.

"Fine." Ryan answered.

"I love school." Rory told him.

"They actually have winter finals this week."

"Oh. I hope I am not taking you away from your studies." Richard stated.

"I don't know if I can study anymore. I feel like my brain is going to explode from all of this knowledge." Rory said happily.

"What about you young man?"

"I think I'm all studied out."

Lorelai gave him another look.

"But I plan on studying after you leave." He said after seeing his mother's stare.

"Your grades are good?"

"Yes. They aren't too bad." Ryan said honestly.

"I'm really glad that the two of you are enjoying school."

"I'm enjoying school too." Ruby told him. "Don't forget about me."

"Oh sweet Ruby, no one could ever forget about you. Are you the smartest in your class?" Richard asked with a smile on his face.

Ruby nodded with a serious look on her face. "No one has told me who is the smartest but I already knew how to read, add, and write my name. No one else really knew how to do those things."

"Well you are a Gilmore." Richard looked at Lorelai who could not stop smiling at her little girl. "Gilmore's are exceptionally smart."

"I know grandpa."

"So Rory," He looked at his oldest granddaughter. "Are you still planning on attending Chilton? I know it was all you could talk about for years."

"Actually I already completed my application."

"You did." Lorelai was surprised. "You didn't talk to me about it."

"I know. I had some time a few days ago. It's due by the end of the year."

"Oh." Lorelai didn't know how she felt about it. She knew it was her dream, but she wasn't sure how she was going to pay for it.

Ryan looked at his mom. He could tell she was nervous.

"Chilton is a fine school. You will learn so much and have many opportunities for just having attended."

"I hope so. I really want to go to Harvard."

"And you will." Richard looked at Ryan. "What about you?"

"I want to stay at Stars Hollow High." He had never wanted to attend Chilton or Harvard.

"I think that you can do whatever you put your mind too. You are a very smart young man."

"Thanks, grandpa."

"I am very proud of all of my grandchildren." Richard told them. "I am also glad that I am getting to spend some time with all of you. I miss you so much."

"We miss you too, grandpa." Rory smiled at him.

"A whole bunch." Ruby added.

"Yeah. It's nice to have you here." Ryan thought he should also say something.

"That's right dad. We are glad to have you."

"Thank you, Lorelai. I was actually hoping that the four of you would come to our New Year's Eve party this year."

"New Year's Eve party?" Lorelai questioned. "What about the Christmas party? What happened to that?"

"We are going out of town to see my mother this year."

"I'm sure mom is loving that." Lorelai quipped.

"We are happy to see my mother."

Lorelai knew that her mother was not happy about it.

"Anyway we will not be here for our normal party, so your mother decided to throw a New Year's Eve party. I really hope that you will come."

"Dad. I don't know." She looked at the kids.

"Your mother has promised me that she will be on her best behavior."

"Dad." Lorelai sighed.

"Lorelai, it would mean the world to me if you would come."

Lorelai looked at the kids again. They didn't seem to have a problem with it. "Okay." Lorelai agreed reluctantly.

Richard's face lit up. "That's great."

"But dad."

"I know. You don't have to say anything else. If you aren't having a good time, you can leave without questions."

"So I guess that mom knows that you are here?" Lorelai asked, realizing the truth.

Richard nodded. "Yes. I couldn't keep it from her."

"Okay." Lorelai figured he would tell her mother. There was nothing she could do about it.

"Grandpa, do you want to see my dollies?" Ruby asked.

"Ruby. Grandpa is still eating."

"Actually. I am done, and I would love to see your dollies." He told Ruby.

"Yay." Ruby jumped down from her seat and grabbed her grandpa's hand. "They are this way." She led him to the living room.

"Mom, is it okay if I join them?" Rory asked.

"Sure. Go ahead."

Rory walked out of the kitchen.

Ryan looked at his mom. "When are you going to tell Rory about dad and the money?" Ryan asked. They hadn't really talked about it.

"That's not for you to worry about." Lorelai whispered.

"But mom." Ryan was worried.

"No. I've got it all under control."

"We can't afford it now."

"Ryan." Lorelai warned. "I'm not having this conversation with you, okay. I will figure it out. The only thing I want you to worry about is your finals and being a kid. Okay. That's it."

Ryan thought long and hard before responding. He knew not to push her, at least not when it came to something like this. "Okay."

"Good. I'm glad we agree." Lorelai smiled at him. She didn't want him to worry, and she didn't want Rory to feel like she couldn't go to Chilton. She was never going to let her financial situation stop her kids from accomplishing their dreams.

* * *

As soon as he got home, he was greeted by Emily. She had been patiently waiting on him. "So."

"Emily, would you please let me get into the house before you ambush me with a million questions?" Richard said. "I haven't even gotten my coat off."

"Here." Emily helped him. "Now. How did it go? Did she ask about me?"

"Yes. She sent her love." Richard lied.

Emily rolled her eyes. "Oh please, Richard. That doesn't even sound like our daughter. You need to learn how to lie a little better."

"Emily. Please. What do you want me to say?"

"Did you ask her about the party?"

"Yes. Yes I did."

"And?" Emily asked curiously.

"She and the children are coming."

"Are you serious?" Emily was surprised.

"Yes. But Emily you have to promise to be on your best behavior."

"Of course."

"Emily I mean it. I'm trying my best to get her back into our lives."

"I'm not going to ruin it, Richard. I promise. I want her back just as much as you do. I miss my grandchildren."

"And they miss you as well." Richard pulled out a little teddy bear. "Ruby, wanted you to have this."

"Really?" Emily was touched.

"Yes. She said that she missed you, and this would make you think of her."

"Oh sweet Ruby." Emily held onto the little bear. She had to find a way to convince Lorelai to forgive her, but she didn't know how to do it.

* * *

Lorelai walked into the girls' bedroom. Rory was in the living room studying. "Alright hon. It is time for bed."

Ruby grabbed her favorite doll and made her way to bed. "Okay mommy."

"Let me tuck you in." Lorelai covered her little girl up. "Did you have a good day sweet girl?"

Ruby smiled. "I was really happy to see grandpa. I gave him a teddy bear to give to grandma."

"You did?" Lorelai asked.

Ruby nodded. "Yes. I miss her mommy."

"You do?" Lorelai wasn't surprised. Ruby had spent a lot of time with Emily over the years.

"Yeah. I bet she misses me. I'm glad we are going to her party. I always like her parties."

"You do?"

Ruby nodded again. "Yeah. I hope you make-up soon."

"Oh sweetie."

"It's okay mommy. I'm a big girl. You don't have to keep things from me."

"I know Ruby." She kissed her forehead. "You are too smart for your own good."

"I'm smart like you."

"You are smarter than me." She gave her a hug and then another kiss. "Sweet dreams my precious girl."

"Night mommy. I love you."

"I love you too, Ruby Ru."

Ruby smiled. She loved when her mommy called her that.

Lorelai walked out of the room and closed the door. She felt a little guilty about her relationship with her mother. Maybe she had made a mistake keeping the kids away from her. But Lorelai knew that she couldn't trust her mom. Emily Gilmore only did what Emily Gilmore wanted to do. She would never change.

Lorelai was nervous about the New Year's Eve party. Unlike Ruby, she hated any party at the Gilmore mansion.

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	37. I Smell Snow

**So I would say that this is another filler chapter, but the ending definitely isn't. I really hope you enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 37: I Smell Snow**

Lorelai woke up abruptly. It was the middle of the night, but that didn't matter. Suddenly she was wide awake. She could smell. "Snow." She whispered happily. She jumped out of bed and rushed to wake her children. She was greeted with dirty looks from all three. They weren't amused by being woken up at three in the morning. Lorelai didn't care. She was their mom and until the law said otherwise, she was in charge. They had to do what she said, even if it seemed crazy to the untrained eye.

"Mom, it is cold." Ryan complained.

I can't walk mommy. I'm too sleepy." Ruby pouted.

"Here." Lorelai picked her up as they made their way further into the yard. "Do you smell that?"

"Yeah. It is the smell of crazy." Rory chimed in as she yawned. "Is this really necessary?"

"It's snow. I smell snow." Lorelai looked up to the sky and smelled the snow.

"It isn't snowing." Ryan said grumpily.

"Just wait for it. It is coming."

Ryan and Rory shared looks. Their mother did this every year.

After a few moments nothing happened.

"Can we go inside? We actually get to sleep late today, and you are ruining it." Ryan told her.

"You guys are no fun. You should be excited. This our first snow in Stars Hollow. We are going to have a white Christmas."

"It isn't snowing." Ryan said again. "We really might have to have you committed."

"Snow is magical. Great things always happen when it snows." Lorelai remembered. "You were born in a snowstorm." She told Ruby. "We barely made it to the hospital. You were almost born in the backseat of the car. But the magical snow led the way."

"We know." Rory told her. "You tell us the same story every year."

"Can't we enjoy the snow in the morning when it has actually fallen on the ground?"

"You guys really are no fun. Let's go inside." As they started to walk back inside they each felt something cold and wet hit their noses.

"Oh wow." Rory smiled. She would never understand how her mom was able to predict snow every single year.

"You should become a weather woman." Ryan smiled at his mom.

"You did it mommy." Ruby kissed her cheek. "You made the snow come."

Lorelai smiled from ear to ear. Good things were about to happen. She could feel it.

* * *

"Oh Lorelai." Mia hugged the young woman. "I absolutely love this." Mia was in awe of the beautiful multicolored scarf Lorelai had given her for Christmas. "It is all of my favorite colors."

"The kids helped me pick it out." Lorelai smiled. She couldn't believe how lucky she was to have Mia in her life. She had been a life saver.

"Even Ryan?" Mia wondered.

Lorelai nodded. "He was the tie breaker. We held up three scarves, and he picked his favorite."

"He has good taste."

"At least I have taught him something."

"He will have one lucky wife one day."

"Oh no. I'm never going to let him get married. He is going to be a mama's boy for the rest of his life. The way it should be." Lorelai laughed.

"Says all mother's everywhere."

"I bet your son is happy to have you in North Carolina for the next week."

"I can't wait to see them." Mia told her. "Actually, Lorelai, I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Okay. Is everything okay?" Lorelai said nervously.

Mia smiled and touched her shoulder softly. "Yes. Everything is great. That is because of you."

"What did I do?"

"Your job." Mia informed her. "You have done such a wonderful job here."

"Why do I suddenly feel like there is a catch?"

"You have done such a great job that I think I'm ready to move to North Carolina permanently."

"What?" Lorelai was surprised. "When? Oh Mia I thought I had at least a few more years. I'm so new. I don't know everything yet. I need more time with you." She rambled.

"Oh Lorelai." Mia smiled at her. "I have an infinite amount of confidence in you. I have no doubt in my mind that you will do a wonderful job without me."

"When?" Lorelai asked again. Lorelai and Mia at the Inn.

"By the end of the summer. So we have some time to prepare for the transition, but you don't need it. I could leave tomorrow and know that the Inn would be okay."

Lorelai was surprised. She didn't want Mia to leave.

"Lorelai I am so happy that you came to this town and ended up at my Inn. You and your kids are such a joy to my life. I only wish that you would have come into my life sooner. You made me realize how much I miss my son and his children." Mia smiled thinking about her grandkids.

"I love you so much, Mia." Lorelai had tears in her eyes as she hugged Mia.

"I love you too, Lorelai." Mia also had tears in her eyes. "Everything is going to be okay. Besides we have half a year to prepare."

"Is your son excited?"

Mia nodded. "He is already looking for me a house close by. He has been asking me to move for years. He is also thankful for you."

"The kids and I are going to visit every time we have the chance." Lorelai told her.

"I am going to hold you to that." Mia looked at her watch. "I should get going. I have to be at the airport in a few hours."

"Safe travels, Mia. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, my sweet Lorelai." Mia said as she walked back to her office.

Lorelai was going to miss Mia. She was thankful for the opportunity Mia had given her, and she would not let her down.

"Lorelai," Sookie walked out of the kitchen holding a gift bag. "I couldn't wait until Christmas."

Lorelai picked up a gift bag from behind the couch. "Me either." She handed Sookie the bag as she took the one in Sookie's hand.

"I love presents."

"Me too."

Both women sat down on the couch.

"You go first." Sookie told her.

Lorelai opened her presents. It was a Hello Kitty waffle iron. "Oh Sookie. This is the best present. I love this." She was smiling from ear to ear.

"I know you love Hello Kitty."

"And waffles. You put the two together, and it is magical." Lorelai laughed. "Okay. Your turn."

Sookie excitedly opened the present. It was also a Hello Kitty waffle maker. "Lorelai." She laughed. "Great minds think alike."

"We were made for each other."

Sookie hugged her. "I am so happy you are my best friend."

"Me too, Sookie." Lorelai was excited. "I love this present."

"I can't wait to make the first waffle. You can't make one until I get back from our vacation."

"Deal."

They hugged once more.

"Merry Christmas, Lorelai."

"Merry Christmas, Sook." Lorelai smiled as she looked at her Hello Kitty waffle maker. It was the perfect gift and Sookie was the best friend a girl could ask for.

* * *

"Rory, do you think mommy will like this?" Ruby asked as she held out a pink bracelet.

"Yeah. Ruby. I think mommy will like anything that you pick out." Rory told her.

"I want her to know how special she is." Ruby told her big sister and Lane, who was shopping with them.

"She already knows. I'm sure of that." Rory picked up a matching necklace. "This goes with that bracelet."

"Oh yeah. That's a good idea Rory." Ruby took the necklace in her hand. "She will be real excited."

"I think so too."

"Can I go look at the stuffed animals over there?" She pointed to the corner.

"Sure. But stay where I can see you."

"Okay."

"She is full of energy."

"I know. If I didn't know better, I would swear she sneaks coffee when we aren't looking."

"Well she is Lorelai's daughter."

"That is true." Rory laughed. "So I wanted to talk to you about something." Rory's face changed to one that was serious.

"Okay." Lane became nervous.

"I think Ryan likes Grace." Rory told her. He had mentioned it to her to make sure she wouldn't go ballistic on him again. She told him it was fine, but that he needed to be respectful to Lane, since they did share a kiss.

"Oh. I kind of figured. I mean I knew she liked him. It was kind of obvious."

"How does that make you feel?"

Lane thought about it for a moment. "I think it is fine."

"Really? I thought you might be upset."

Lane shook her head. "No. I'm not upset. It might be a little awkward at first, but I'm not sad or anything."

"It is kind of quick though, right?"

Lane shrugged. "We're fifteen. I think it is completely normal. Besides it isn't like your brother and I were dating."

"I feel guilty." Rory admitted.

"Why do you feel guilty?"

"I told Ryan that he couldn't date you. I thought it would be too hard for me to see the two of you together. And now I'm worried you might be soulmates, and I ruined it for you."

Lane laughed. "We weren't soulmates. It was a nice kiss. But we definitely aren't soulmates. I doubt I'm going to meet my soulmate at fifteen."

"You could. It happens."

"Rory." Lane touched her shoulder. "It isn't your fault. I didn't think that we should date. I came to that conclusion all on my own without ever knowing how you felt."

"Why?" Rory wondered.

"Ryan is a nice guy, but he is your brother. When we kissed the first thing I wanted to do was tell you. I wanted to jump up and down and talk about it in a sing songy way. But then I thought of how awkward it would be for you. I want to be able to talk about boy stuff with my best friend."

"Me too."

"It would have been weird, and besides my mama wouldn't have approved. She probably wouldn't let me hangout with you anymore because he is your brother. I just didn't want that." Lane was wise beyond her years. "You have nothing to feel guilty about."

"Thanks, Lane." Rory hugged her. "Do you think Grace only wanted to be our friend because of Ryan?"

"That's what I thought at first, and maybe that is how it started. But now I think that Grace just wants to be friends. She likes us, and we like her."

"Yeah she is pretty cool."

"And you don't think it is awkward that she is dating Ryan?"

Rory shook her head. "She isn't my best friend. You are."

"Always. You are stuck with me Gilmore."

"Rory." Ruby ran back over to her big sister holding a stuffed panda bear. "I think mommy would love this panda bear. This is what we should get her." Her smile was bigger than her face.

Rory and Lane both giggled. They knew Ruby wanted the toy for herself. She was such a mess.

* * *

Jess and Luke were walking down the street with a few bags in their hands.

"I can't believe mom called." Jess broke the silence. Liz had called him that morning to wish him a Merry Christmas. She was a little early, but she said that she wanted to make sure she called him. Supposedly she had a new job and would be working on Christmas. Jess didn't know if he believed her, but he was glad that she had called. It was the first time she had actually remembered, and it meant something to him.

"Yeah. How is she doing?" Luke asked.

Jess shrugged. "I guess she is fine. You know mom."

"Yeah. I know your mom." Luke thought about it for a moment. "You know, we could make plans to see her while you are off for winter break."

"No." Jess responded quickly. "I don't think that is such a good idea."

"I would go with you this time."

"No." Was his answer again.

"Okay." Luke didn't want to push the subject further. "It is up to you. It has always been up to you. As long as I am with you."

"I know." Jess sighed and looked up at his uncle. "I have everything that I need."

Luke smiled. That was exactly what he needed to hear. They made their way into the diner. Caesar had been holding the place down until they got back from their shopping trip.

"What's that?" Jess pointed to the top of the door.

Luke sighed angrily. "Taylor." Luke grunted. "I can't believe he put stupid mistletoe on my door. I told him not to do it."

"I think it is funny." Jess laughed.

"I'm going to go talk to Caesar about this." Luke huffed off.

Jess just shook his head. He stuffed the bags behind the counter and started clearing tables. The place was pretty dead. Most people were out shopping, getting last minute presents. They would probably be busy for dinner.

Jess looked outside to see Ryan and Grace walking towards the diner. They were holding hands. Jess sighed. He couldn't believe he felt jealous. He and Grace had been spending time together doing their homework. She was pretty cool, but he shouldn't feel jealous. He knew that Grace liked Ryan. He had even offered to help her with him. He shook it off. He didn't need to worry about it.

They walked into the diner. "Oh Ryan. Look." Grace pointed to the mistletoe. "It is mistletoe." She smiled.

Ryan's face turned red.

"I think we are supposed to kiss."

Ryan's face turned even redder.

He leaned in and gave her a quick kiss. Grace giggled.

The jealousy bug hit Jess once more. He shook it off. He couldn't be jealous of his best friend.

"Hey Jess." Ryan said as he walked up to the counter. Grace found a seat.

"Hey Ryan. I've got to take these bags upstairs. Uncle Luke will be right out." Jess grabbed the bags and ran up the stairs.

"Okay." Ryan said as his friend had already rushed off.

"Hey Ryan." Luke came out of the back.

"Hey Luke."

Luke looked around to see if anyone else was with Ryan.

"My mom isn't here." Ryan told him.

"Oh I wasn't looking for her."

"Yes you were." Ryan knew it was the truth.

"What can I get you?" Luke decided to change the subject.

"You should talk to her." Ryan informed him. "She could probably use someone to talk too."

"Really?"

"Yeah." Ryan nodded. "You know, if you are worried about my dad, you don't have to be. He isn't in the picture, and as far as I'm concerned I hope we never have to see him again."

"You don't mean that." Luke said.

"Yes I do. My dad isn't a good man." Ryan could finally admit it. "We are better off without him."

Luke nodded. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to say.

"I know my mom has been avoiding this place. I think she is afraid you are mad at her. She hasn't really talked about it. But I just know my mom."

"I'm not mad."

"You should talk to her." Ryan encouraged.

Luke nodded again. Ryan was right.

* * *

Lorelai was at home wrapping presents before the kids got home. She was almost finished. She hoped that the kids enjoyed their first Christmas in Stars Hollow. She wanted to make it special for them. They deserved all the happiness in the world.

She heard a knock on the door and threw a blanket on top of the presents. She walked to the door and was surprised when Luke was standing in front of her. "Hi." She said softly.

"Hi." He had a whole pot of coffee and a Luke's Diner bag in his hand.

"What is that?"

"Coffee. I can't believe you of all people have forgotten what coffee looks like."

Lorelai smiled. He was acting weird. "I didn't forget what coffee looks like, but you have whole pot in your hands."

"Yes. It is kind of heavy. Can I sit it down?"

Lorelai nodded. "Of course. Come in." She led him to the kitchen. "Now can you explain why you have a whole pot of coffee?"

"You haven't been to the diner in weeks." He told her matter-of-factly.

"I know. I thought it might be awkward."

"Because of me." Luke said sadly.

"Luke."

"I'm sorry." Luke apologized. "I was a jerk about Christopher."

"No. Luke. I understand. I know what it looked like. Christopher shouldn't have kissed me. And I should have slapped him or kicked him in the groin."

Luke laughed. "I should have stuck around. We should have talked about it. I shouldn't have pushed you away. That's what I am good at though. I have a hard time letting people in."

"I understand." Lorelai told him. "I'm not a liar, Luke. I would never lie to you."

"I know. I should have known that." Luke shook his head. "I shouldn't have been a jerk to you. You didn't deserve that. You told me how manipulative Christopher was, and I should have believed you. You have never given me any reason not to believe you."

"Thank you, Luke." Lorelai smiled. She was glad to hear him say all of those things. She pointed to the pot of coffee. "What's with the pot of coffee and the bag?"

"You haven't been in the diner for the last few weeks. I thought I owed you at least a whole pot of coffee and some Danishes."

Lorelai opened the bag. "Luke, there are like six Danishes in here."

"Eight." He corrected her.

"Luke," she smiled. "You didn't have to do this. You hate supporting my coffee addiction."

Luke nodded. "Yes I did. I've missed seeing you and serving you your coffee and Danishes. I don't want you to stop coming to the diner even if you decide you only want to be friends. I get it. I would rather be your friend than not have you in my life at all." Luke sighed. "I heard about Christopher." He didn't know if it was the right time to bring it up.

"You did?"

"Ryan told Jess."

"Oh. Of course." Lorelai was glad that Ryan had someone to talk to because they had never talked about it.

"We can talk about it. I'm here for you." Luke wanted her to know that.

"I don't." She shook her head. "I don't want to talk about Christopher. I want to talk about how sweet I think it is that you brought me a whole pot of coffee. You know the way to my heart." She touched his hand.

"I want to give this a try."

Lorelai smiled and led him outside.

"What are we doing?" He questioned.

They were now standing on the lawn in the snow.

"You are going to freeze. Come on, Lorelai. What are we doing?"

"I wanted to be in the snow when we did this." She pulls him into a kiss. They finally pull apart. "I want to try too." She thought she should tell him how she felt.

Luke smiled. "Was it the coffee? Or the Danish?" He laughed.

"It's just you."

This time Luke leaned in and kissed her again.

Rory, Ryan, and Ruby were walking up the driveway when they saw their mom and Luke kissing. They were all happy about it. They wanted their mom to be happy.

* * *

 **Please let me know what you thought! The next chapter will be the New Years Eve party.**


	38. You are Slime

**I hope you guys are still interested in the story. I am so thankful for all of your support. It means so much to me.**

 **I hope you enjoy this chapter. The New Years Eve party will cause some drama.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 38: You are Slime**

After her amazing kiss with Luke, Lorelai had talked to the kids about it. They all convinced her that they were okay with it. All they wanted was for their mom to be happy. She told them that she didn't know what was going to happen with Luke. They want to take things slow and see where things will go. She was relieved that the kids were okay with it. She didn't want to do anything that would upset them.

Both she and Luke had agreed that they would go on their first real date after Christmas break. Lorelai wanted to spend as much time with the kids as possible. She knew that although Ryan hadn't talked about his dad and what he had overheard, he was still having a hard time dealing with it. Lorelai knew that she needed to talk to him about it, but it was too hard for both of them. She wanted to forget it ever even happened. She hated that Christopher always had a way of making her life difficult. It wasn't fair, and she was tired of it.

Another thing she hated was Gilmore mansion parties, but here she was, standing in front of her parent's house with her kids. It was time for the first annual Gilmore New Year's Eve extravaganza. Lorelai patted herself on the back. She came up with that name all on her own.

"Mom." Rory tapped her on the shoulder. "Several people have gone in ahead of us. Are we just going to stand here all night?"

"Sounds good to me." Ryan answered. He had complained all the way to Hartford.

Lorelai felt the same way, but she had promised her father that they would be there. "We are going to go in." Lorelai told her kids but didn't move.

"Next week?" Rory said sarcastically.

"Do you think she will have apple tarts?" Ruby asked. "I really want one."

"I hope so. That's the best part about a Gilmore party." Lorelai kissed her little girl's forehead. "Let's do this." She held onto Ruby's hand and knocked on the door. She took a deep breath and sighed. "Here we go." She said quietly.

The door opened and instead of a maid, Emily was standing in front of them.

"Mom." Lorelai was surprised.

"Lorelai." Emily didn't know what to say to her daughter. "Kids." She smiled. "Come in." They all followed her into the house.

"Hilda, take their coats." She told one of her maids. Hilda took their coats as she was told. "Oh I think you have all grown three inches." Emily took turns hugging each grandchild. She shared a look with Lorelai.

"Grandma, may I have an apple tart?" Ruby asked.

"I made them just for you." She told the little girl. "You two take her into the dining area. There should be some on the table." She told Rory and Ryan. They both nodded and took Ruby with them. Lorelai and Emily were left standing in the foyer awkwardly. "Lorelai, I think we should talk."

Lorelai shook her head. "I'm not here to talk, mom. I came because dad asked me to. I suggest you spend your time with your grandchildren." Lorelai walked past her mother. Emily sighed. She needed to talk to her daughter.

"Lorelai." Richard greeted her.

"Hey dad."

"I saw the children. They were already devouring apple tarts."

"Lead me in that direction. I want to join them." Lorelai laughed as she made her way to find her children.

"Did you talk to her?" Richard asked his wife.

"No. She doesn't want to have anything to do with me." Emily said sadly. "I don't think I'll ever be able to fix our relationship." The realization was extremely hard for her.

* * *

In the dining room, Rory and Ruby were drinking punch and enjoying snacks. "I hope you have saved some for me." Lorelai told them.

"They are all mine." Ruby giggled.

"No way." Lorelai tickled her. "You have to share with mommy."

"Okay you can have one." Ruby handed her one.

Lorelai took a bite. "Delicious."

"That's what we said." Rory told her.

"Hey." Lorelai looked around. "Where is your brother?"

Rory and Ruby both shrugged. "Probably trying to hide from all the old women. You know they always flirt with him."

"Well yes because he is always the most handsome." Lorelai continued to look for him but figured Rory was right. He was probably hiding, like she wanted to do. Neither one of them wanted to be there.

* * *

Ryan knew that he shouldn't have stolen a glass of champagne, but he needed something to take the edge off. He didn't want to be there. After he finished his first glass, he decided against his better judgement to take another one. He would be able to hide it from his mom. She would never know.

* * *

"Ruby." Rory called for her little sister as she walked up the stairs. She had lost her in the crowd. A lady told Rory she thought she saw the little girl go up the stairs. "Ruby." She called out again as she opened the door to her mother's old bedroom.

Ruby was staring at the dollhouse.

"What are you doing?"

"I wish grandma would let us take it home." She told her big sister. "I think it is so cool."

Rory smiled as she remembered her mom talking about the dollhouse. Lorelai told the girls that her mom barely let her play with it, but it was still her favorite toy. "You know she won't. We have asked her before."

"It should be played with. Mommy would love to have it at home."

Rory knew her little sister also would love to have it at home. "I doubt she will ever give it to us."

Ruby sighed. "Can I take this picture?" Ruby asked as she held up a picture of Lorelai and the dollhouse.

"Sure. Why do you want it?"

"Mommy looks happy."

"Here. You can put it in my bag."

Ruby slipped the picture into Rory's bag. She was happy to have it.

"We could play with it now." Rory told her.

"Really?" Ruby asked excitedly.

"Yeah." Rory knelt down next to Ruby.

Ruby handed her a doll. "Thanks, Rory." She was so excited. She really did look up to her big sister. She wanted to be just like her one day.

* * *

Lorelai took a large gulp of her champagne. She was already tired, and they hadn't been there very long. People kept asking about her divorce.

"Lorelai, sweetheart." A blonde woman came up to her and gave her the fakest hug. "I am so surprisee to see you here. I heard you moved to that tiny little town because your broken heart was just too much for you."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Vivian that's not the reason we moved."

"Oh honey you don't have to lie to me. We are friends. I know all about divorce. I mean I'm on my third husband. After the second divorce it's like changing your underwear. It is no big deal."

Lorelai looked at Vivian as if she had lost her mind. She didn't even know how to respond.

"Oh Lorelai there you are." Emily said as she pulled her daughter's arm. "I'm sorry Vivian. I need my daughter."

"Oh of course Emily."

Lorelai looked at her mother as she led her out of the room. "What is it? Are the kids okay?"

"Of course." Emily let her daughter's arm go. "You looked like you needed to be rescued."

Lorelai gave her mother a look. "Thank you but I was fine."

"Those people are driving you crazy. I can tell."

"No more than usual. These people have driven me crazy since birth." With that said, Lorelai walked away from her mother.

Emily sighed. She felt defeated. She wanted Lorelai to know that she was trying. She wanted to make amends.

* * *

Ryan was feeling a little tipsy, but the champagne was helping. The party wasn't so bad. He had been able to stay away from everyone, and didn't think anyone had noticed.

He grabbed another drink off of the server tray. He was relieved the servers weren't saying anything.

"Whoa there, buddy," Christopher grabbed his arm. "Last time I checked you aren't 21." He took the drink.

Ryan scowled and pushed away from his dad. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm the one that will ask the questions." Christopher crossed his arms, trying to play the stern parent card.

"You don't get to ask me any questions. You can't parent me." Ryan yelled and stumbled.

"I'm your parent. I think that gives me the right to parent you." Christopher argued but tried to remain as calm as possible.

"No." Ryan pushed back again. "You are slime."

"Ryan, watch your tone." Christopher was beginning to get embarrassed. He knew people were beginning to hear them. He touched his son's arm. "Let's go get you some coffee."

"Don't touch me." Ryan yelled again. "You big fat lying jerk." He spat.

"Where is your mom?" Christopher looked around.

"She doesn't want to see you. Stay away from her. She hates you and so do I."

"Ryan Gilmore." Christopher yelled.

People began to make their way to where the two were arguing. Richard and Emily included.

"Go away. I know what you did. You are the worst person on the planet. You have never cared about us." Ryan looked around at everyone. "You are nothing but a liar and all these people think you are an upstanding citizen, but you aren't. You put mom through hell."

Richard stepped between them. "Ryan, Christopher. What is going on here?"

"Oh nothing, grandpa. Just spending time with my dad." Ryan stumbled again.

Lorelai made her way into the room, realizing one of the voices belonged to Ryan. "Ryan." She was then surprised to see Christopher. "Christopher, what are you doing here?" She wasn't happy about it.

"Ruining our lives like always." Ryan answered for his father.

"Honey," She touched his shoulder. "What's going on?" She could tell that he wasn't himself. "Have you been drinking?" She already knew the answer. She could smell the champagne all over his breath.

Ryan didn't say anything.

"Come on, hon, let's go get some coffee." She was concerned about her son.

"No." He pulled away from her. "I'm fine."

"You are not fine." Christopher argued.

"Shut up." Ryan yelled.

"Ryan." Emily finally spoke up. She couldn't watch this any longer.

"He doesn't get to talk to me."

"Ryan we should go to the kitchen." Emily encouraged.

"No grandma. I don't want to. I want everyone to know how awful he is."

Lorelai tried to intervene. "This is not the place to discuss this." She said sternly.

Rory and Ruby made their way back downstairs. Rory was surprised to see everyone standing around Ryan.

"There is never a good place to talk about this. He is a gambler, a cheater, and a thief. I hate him for ruining our family." He looked at Christopher. "I never want to see you again." He ran out of the house.

Christopher started to follow him.

"No. You aren't going after him. You have done enough." Lorelai stopped him.

"He is mad at me. I can't believe you told him."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "I didn't tell him. He overheard us. I can't believe you came here."

"I needed to see you."

"And I can't believe you invited him. It was probably all a setup. It always is with you." She accused her mother.

"I didn't invite him." Emily defending herself.

"Whatever." Lorelai sighed. "Just stay away from us Christopher." Lorelai leaves.

Richard stops Christopher from going after her. "You need to go."

"Richard you don't understand."

"You aren't welcome in this house." Richard informed him.

Christopher looks around and finally decides to leave.

Emily turns her attention to Rory and Ruby. "Girls why don't you go back upstairs."

"What's going on?"

"Daddy left again." Ruby noticed. He was always leaving.

"Well that is okay. Let's go upstairs." Emily walked up with them.

Lorelai comes back inside. "I can't find him."

"We will find him." Richard assured her.

"My car is missing." Christopher walked back into the house.

"What?" Lorelai was terrified. "He's been drinking."

* * *

 **Alright, let me know what you thought!**

 **By the way, Nancy the title of this chapter is just for you!**


	39. Strength

**Thank you all so much for the reviews, faves, and follows. You really are the best. I was hoping to get this up early today, but didn't get the chance until now. I hope you enjoy.**

 **Poor Ryan. He isn't making good decisions.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 39: Strength**

Lorelai was pacing back and forth, her heart pounding faster than it ever had before. They had looked everywhere for Ryan but couldn't find him. Her biggest fear was that he had stolen Christopher's car and wrapped it around a pole or even worse, another car. Her mind was running a mile a minute with a thousand scenarios, none of them good.

She was officially in full on panic mode. She still couldn't wrap her mind around the events that had taken place. Her son had gotten drunk. Christopher had shown up. Ryan had a major outburst and then taken off in Christopher's car. How did everything spin out of her control?

Richard came back into the house. "They found Christopher's car." He looked relieved.

"Where?" Christopher asked, annoying Lorelai that he was still there.

"Two streets over." Richard told Lorelai. He wasn't concerned with Christopher.

"Ryan?" Lorelai touched her chest, bracing herself for the answer.

"No Ryan." He shook his head. "When we found the car he was no where insight. We searched the entire area. I don't know where he could have gone off to." Richard told his concerned daughter.

Lorelai grimaced. Where was her boy?

Emily touched her shoulder. "He is going to be fine."

"You don't know that." Lorelai sighed. She looked at Christopher. "This is all your fault. You have your car. You can just go." Lorelai walked past him needing to be anywhere but where he was.

He decided to do what she asked and leave. It was probably for the best.

"Mom." Rory came back down the stairs. This time alone. "What can I do to help?"

"Go back upstairs with your sister, sweetie." Lorelai ran her fingers through Rory's hair.

"But mom I want to…"

Lorelai cut her off. "Rory, I'm not asking. Just go upstairs, please." She didn't mean to sound harsh, she was just really upset and scared.

Rory nodded and hugged her mom. "I love you, mom." Rory knew her mom was stressed and it was best not to argue with her.

"I love you too, kid." Lorelai gave her a kiss on the forehead before Rory went back upstairs.

Christopher walked back into the house.

"Christopher, we have asked you to leave." Richard began.

"Ryan took my wallet." He thought they should know.

"How did he get your wallet?" Lorelai asked confusedly.

"I left it in the car." He admitted.

"Of course. Because that's where every good wallet belongs." Lorelai said sarcastically.

"Lore." Christopher sighed. This night had not gone the way that he had intended to. He was supposed to make things right with Lorelai.

"No." She shook her head and held out her hands. "Don't talk to me."

"I don't think that I should leave."

"Do whatever you want, Chris. You always do." She walked away.

Emily walked over to Christopher. "You are to leave as soon as that boy is found." She didn't know the extent to what he had done to her daughter and grandchildren, but that didn't matter. She didn't want anything to do with him and definitely didn't want him in her house.

"He is my son." Christopher reminded her as if she had forgotten.

Emily sighed and walked away.

Lorelai walked into the kitchen and found the phone. She dialed a number.

"Hello." Luke answered from his apartment.

"Hi." Lorelai said softly.

"What's wrong?" He could tell immediately that she was upset.

"Is Ryan there?" She asked, nervously. Praying that he was there.

"No. I thought he was with you."

"He got upset. He left. I can't find him." Lorelai told him, trying to hold back her tears.

"Oh no. Lorelai, what do you need me to do?"

"He had been drinking." Lorelai told him. It was still hard for her to believe. He was only fifteen years old. Although she had started younger than that, but she thought things were different for her kids. She was not raising them the way she had been raised, at least not anymore.

Luke closed his eyes and shook his head. He could only imagine how horrible she was feeling. "What can I do?" He asked again. He would do anything for her and her children.

"I don't know. I just needed to hear your voice."

"I can come to Hartford."

"No. Don't do that. Maybe he will come to you or to Jess. I want you to be there if he does."

"Lorelai, you have to believe that he will be okay."

"Lorelai." Richard walked into the kitchen.

"Hold on Luke." She said into the phone and turned towards her dad. "Dad, did you find him?"

"Christopher got a call from his credit card company. He is in Stars Hollow."

Lorelai felt relieved. "Luke, he is in Stars Hollow."

"I'm going to go look for him." Luke told her.

"I'll be there shortly. If you find him please take him home and keep him safe."

"I will." Luke told her. "I will call you when I find him." He would find him for her.

"Thank you, Luke." She hung up the phone. "Dad." She looked at her father.

"I will drive you." Richard told her.

"You don't have to do that."

"Yes I do, and I won't take no for an answer. The girls can stay with your mother."

Lorelai thought about it. "Okay." She thought it best just to give in. It was probably best for someone else to drive her. She was a nervous wreck.

* * *

Luke had checked the Gilmore house first, but Ryan hadn't been there. He checked back with Jess but still no Ryan. Luke finally thought about the bridge. He hoped that Ryan wasn't there. The weather wasn't good. It was freezing, and the bridge was dangerous during this time of year. Taylor always warned the kids to stay away from the bridge during the winter. Luke wasn't even able to drive his truck very close to the bridge because of the weather. He had to get out and walk most of the way.

Luke hoped Ryan was bundled up. It seemed to be getting colder and colder by the minute. Luke shivered and held out his flashlight as he looked for Ryan. "Ryan." He called out for the boy. His calls received no answer.

He continued to call out for him.

Luke shined his light and saw something laying in the snow. "Oh no." Even though he was cold, he sprinted to the spot. His heart dropped when he realized it was Ryan. "Ryan. Ryan. Buddy. Are you okay?" He dropped to the ground and shook the boy. It looked like he had hit his head. He was still breathing, but he was freezing. His face was a light purple.

Luke took off his coat. "It's okay Ryan. I got you." He wrapped Ryan in his coat. He pulled out his cellphone. A cellphone he rarely used but was so happy to have at this moment. He called 911 and reported Ryan's condition. He was going to try to get him to the truck. He would meet the ambulance.

"It's okay Ryan. Everything is going to be okay." Luke picked Ryan up and began to carry him to his truck. Luke was determined to make sure nothing happened to the boy. He knew that Lorelai would be devastated if he wasn't okay.

* * *

Emily made her way up the stairs. She was waiting for Lorelai and Richard to call. They should be close to Stars Hollow by now. She still couldn't believe what she had witnessed between Ryan and Christopher. She had never seen Ryan so upset before. Yes he could be moody and broody, but he had never had an outburst quiet like that.

Oh yes and the drinking. That scared her more than anything. He was only fifteen. Lorelai had gotten caught several times slipping their liquor by the time she was fifteen, but for some reason, Emily felt like that was different. Lorelai was rebelling. She was always rebelling against Emily, even when she was a small child. Emily didn't think that was the case with Ryan. He didn't drink as an act of rebellion. He was drinking because he was upset, and that was far worse in her mind.

She walked into Lorelai's old bedroom. Ruby was fast asleep in Lorelai's bed. But Rory was wide awake sitting on the edge of the bed. "Oh Rory."

She stood up when she saw her grandmother. "Have you heard anything yet? Is my brother okay?"

Emily led her back to the bed and sat beside her. "They will call as soon as they find him."

"What if they don't find him?" Rory was nervous. Her brother had never done anything like this before. "What if something happens to him? This is all my fault."

Emily shook her head. "Oh no, Rory. Why would you think that? This is not your fault."

"I should have been watching him. I knew that he didn't want to come." She noticed the look on her grandmother's face. "No offense to you. He wasn't really feeling up to a party."

"I know that your brother doesn't like these parties. He gets that from your mother. She has always hated them."

"They usually aren't so bad. This one was a little more eventful than most." Rory tried to lighten the mood.

Emily smiled. "Yes. I guess you are very right about that." Emily touched her granddaughter's face gently. "This is not your fault. You cannot blame yourself for this at all. Understood."

Rory nodded.

"Your brother knew that he shouldn't have been drinking. Besides, any of us adults should have noticed what was happening."

"Did you invite dad?" Rory asked. "It's okay if you did."

Emily shook her head. "No. I didn't know he was coming. His parents are out of town." Emily was telling the truth. "I didn't know that he and your mother were fighting."

"He came to Stars Hollow." Rory told her.

"He did." Emily was surprised.

"Yes. He was there for over a week, but then one day he just left without even a goodbye. Mom and Ryan said it was because he had to go back to work, but I always felt like there was more to it. I guess that I was right."

"So you don't know what your brother was talking about?"

Rory shook her head. "No. I don't think I want to know."

Emily rubbed her shoulders.

Rory looked her grandmother in the eyes. "Our life with mom is really good. We love our town and for the first time in a really long time we feel like we have found a home." Rory wanted her to know that. "I want you and mom to makeup, but I want you to let mom do things her way. She needs that and so do we."

Emily didn't say anything. Deep down she knew her granddaughter was right.

Rory gave her a hug. "I love you, grandma."

"I love you too, Rory." Emily held her tight.

"Do you think they have found him?" Rory asked.

"They will call us as soon as they do." Emily looked at her watch. She really wished they would hurry up.

* * *

Lorelai and Richard finally made it to Stars Hollow. She knew Stars Hollow was only thirty minutes from her parents' house, but it felt like an eternity. She and Richard had remained quiet. To her surprise her father never once asked her about Christopher and why Ryan accused him of all of those things. She was sure that although he hadn't, he would eventually.

"Where should we go first?" Richard asked. He wasn't very familiar with the small town.

"I don't know. Luke called earlier and said that he wasn't at home. I don't know what to do, daddy. I'm so scared." Lorelai looked at him like she had when she was a little girl and scraped her knee. She looked so lost.

Richard reached over and placed his hand on her shoulder. "I know you are. All a parent ever wants to know is that his or her daughter is safe. That's the most important thing."

Lorelai wiped away her tears.

"Ryan is a strong young man. He gets his strength from you. He is going to be just fine. He probably needed some time alone to think."

"When I find him, he is never going to be alone again. I am going to attach him to my hip."

"I would expect nothing less." Richard smiled. "And it is exactly what he deserves for worrying you."

"Maybe we should go to the diner. Luke hasn't answered his phone in the last ten minutes." Lorelai thought. "Take a left and then a right at the stop sign." She gave her father directions.

Richard nodded and did as she instructed.

They were about to turn on the street with the diner when they heard an ambulance coming their way.

"Oh my God." Lorelai knew immediately that the ambulance was there for her baby. It was a mother's intuition.

"I'll follow the ambulance." Richard told her, sensing her fear.

Lorelai felt like she was holding her breath.

They followed the ambulance through the town.

"That's Luke's truck." She told her father. "Oh no." She finally saw Luke carrying her little baby boy to the ambulance. "I've got to get out."

Richard stopped the car, and Lorelai immediately opened the door and ran to her son.

"Ma'am." The ambulance driver started.

Lorelai ignored him and anyone else that tried to speak to her. She didn't hear anything anyone was saying. Her only focus was on her son. He looked so cold. Luke said something to her, but she couldn't even hear him. She did notice that he also looked pretty cold and was no longer wearing his jacket.

"It's okay, baby. I promise. Mommy is here." She stroked Ryan's hair. "Everything is going to be okay."

Richard grabbed her arm as the EMT's took care of Ryan and put him in the ambulance. She insisted that she ride with them. She followed the men to the ambulance.

Richard looked at Luke and extended his hand. Luke shook the man's hand. "You should probably go to the hospital as well."

"I'm fine." Luke told him. "I'm going to the hospital, but I don't need to be checked out. I will be okay."

Richard nodded. "Thank you for finding my grandson."

Luke nodded as he watched the ambulance drive away. He did something he hadn't done in a while. He prayed to God. He begged Him to keep Ryan safe, and be with Lorelai as she sat by her son.

Everything had to be okay.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**

 **The Rory and Emile scene was a last minute edition, but I thought it was needed. I hope you all liked it.**


	40. Promise

**Thank you all so much for the reviews, faves, and follows. I am so happy that people are still reading this story.**

 **I have to admit I am not very good with medical terminology. Please forgive me if I got some of this wrong. I tried to look it up. So hopefully it isn't too wrong.**

 **I hope you all enjoy this chapter.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 40: Promise**

" _Mommy," a four year old Ryan ran up to his mother. He had tears in his eyes as he held his hand in pain._

" _Baby," she scooped the little boy into her arms and sat him on the table. "What happened little man?"_

" _I. Fell. Off. The swing." He sniffled, trying to catch his breath. He had been outside playing in the backyard. He loved to swing. "It hurts, mommy. Please make it better."_

" _Can I take a look at it?" She asked her sweet little boy._

" _It hurts when I let it go." He told his mommy, holding on to his hand for dear life._

 _She rubbed his shoulders. "I can't fix it unless you let me look at it."_

 _Ryan gave her a sad look. He finally opened his hand to let his mom look at it. He had a little red dash in the middle of his hand. It didn't look too bad, but the tears in his eyes were enough to break any mother's heart._

" _Oh hon." Lorelai continued to look at his hand. "I need to wipe it off, put some medicine on it, and put a band aid on it. I think we have a power ranger's band aid."_

" _The medicine will hurt."_

" _Just a little, but it will make it better."_

" _I'm scared."_

" _Oh little man. You don't have to be scared. I would never let anything bad happen to you." She kissed his forehead. "As soon as we clean it up, it will feel better. I promise."_

" _You promise?" He asked with a sniffle._

 _Lorelai nodded. "I promise."_

" _I love you mommy."_

" _Oh I love you too, my sweet Ryan." She would always be there for her little boy._

"Lorelai." Richard called out to his daughter as he made his way into the waiting room.

"Dad." She was brought back to reality.

Richard sat beside her. "How is he?"

"They are running some tests. They asked me to wait here. He still wasn't awake." That scared her. "He was so cold." She remembered touching his body. He felt as cold as ice.

"They will take good care of him here."

Lorelai tried to hold back her tears to the best of her ability. "I know." Or at least she hoped so. She rested her head in her hands.

Richard touched her back to comfort her.

"I can't believe this happened."

"Lorelai," Richard said her name softly. She looked up at him. "You need to tell me what Christopher did."

"Dad. I don't want to talk about it." She shook her head. This was not the time or place to talk about that. In the scheme of things, it didn't even matter. The only thing that mattered was Ryan.

"Lorelai." He encouraged. He wasn't going to let this go. Lorelai knew that. "Did he cheat on you?" He remembered from Ryan's outburst.

Lorelai didn't say anything, but Richard didn't need her to speak. He could tell by the look in her eyes that the answer was yes. It broke his heart. He had trusted Christopher. They thought he would be good to his daughter. They had been wrong.

"Why didn't you tell us?"

"I didn't want anyone to know." Lorelai admitted. She hoped he wouldn't ask her about the other things Ryan had alluded to. "I didn't want the kids to know."

"How did Ryan find out?"

"He heard Christopher and me arguing about it a few weeks ago." Lorelai told him. "He didn't want to talk about it after, but obviously he needed to talk about it. I should have pushed him to talk to me."

"Don't blame yourself. This is not your fault." Richard told her.

"How did I not know he was drinking?" Lorelai was confused. She was usually more observant when it came to her children.

"Kids can be sneaky." He pointed at her. "Trust me on that." Richard knew all too well.

Lorelai ignored his comment. She knew he was talking about her and her rebellious teenage years. "He had to be drinking the whole night. The doctor told me his alcohol blood level was through the roof. I can't blame that on Christopher because he hadn't been at the party for that long." Lorelai tried to figure things out in her head. "I don't know what I will do if he isn't okay. I'm his mother. I'm supposed to protect him."

"Lorelai. You cannot talk like that."

"Lorelai."

Both Richard and Lorelai turned around to see Luke and Jess walking into the waiting room.

Lorelai stood up, walked towards Luke, and gave him a hug. "You should see a doctor." She immediately told him. He was cold. Not as cold as Ryan, but he was still cold.

"That's what I told him." Jess agreed.

Luke shot him a look. "I'm fine."

"You are freezing." Lorelai told him.

"I'll warm up. I'm fine." Luke disagreed with them. He knew he would be okay. "How is Ryan?"

"They are running some tests." She told him.

"He will be okay." Luke rubbed her shoulder.

Richard noticed. "I think my daughter is right. You should get yourself checked out."

Luke went to speak but was interrupted by Rory and Ruby running into the room. "Mom." Rory said as she hugged her. Emily followed closely behind the girls.

"Rory. Ruby. What are you two doing here?" She leaned down next to her daughters. "You were supposed to stay at home with your grandmother."

"Rory, wouldn't take no for an answer." Emily informed her.

"I couldn't sleep knowing Ryan was in the hospital." Rory said before her mother could argue with her. "We wanted to be here with you."

Lorelai was actually relieved to see them. She gave them both another hug. She had tears in her eyes.

"Mommy, you are sad." Ruby noticed. "Is Ryan going to be okay?"

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah baby. He is going to be okay." Even though she wasn't positive.

"Luke. Jess. What are you guys doing here?" Rory said once she noticed the two guys.

"Luke actually found your brother." Lorelai let them know. She was so grateful for Luke.

Rory gave him a hug. Luke wasn't expecting it, but welcomed her hug.

Emily walked over to her husband and took his hand.

"Ms. Gilmore." The doctor walked into the waiting room.

Lorelai immediately became nervous. "Dr. Wilson, is my baby okay?" She felt like she was holding her breath.

He took a breath. "First, I would like to say that his scans were clear. I don't think that he has any brain damage, but we will know more once he wakes up."

"He still isn't awake?" Lorelai asked nervously.

"No he isn't. That is because of the hypothermia."

"Hypothermia?"

Richard and Emily walked up behind Lorelai to give her support.

"Yes your son's body temperature was extremely low. We are rewarming his core temperature with warmed IV fluids and heated and humidified oxygen."

"Is he going to be okay?"

"I have every reason to believe that he will be fine. When someone suffers from hypothermia we become concerned with possible complications."

"Complications?" Richard was the one that spoke up.

"We want to make sure that Ryan doesn't get pneumonia."

Lorelai nodded. "Can I see him?"

Dr. Wilson examined the room, imagining everyone was there for Ryan. "Only you for now."

"Okay. Thank you."

"I'll take you to his room."

"I'll be back soon, okay." She told her girls as she followed the doctor out of the waiting room.

"Give him a kiss for us." Emily told her daughter as she walked away. Richard squeezed her hand tightly to let her know that everything was going to be okay.

* * *

Lorelai walked into Ryan's hospital room. Her heart dropped. She never wanted to see her baby so vulnerable and sick. He looked smaller than he ever had before. "Hey buddy." She said as she sat beside his bed. "I'm going to need you to wake up so that I can yell at you." She chuckled as a tear fell down her face.

"You are not allowed to scare me like this ever again. Do you understand that?" She said sternly as if he could hear her. She grabbed his hand. It was still so cold. "I need you to warm up okay. I'm never letting you out in the cold again. I love you. My sweet boy. I love you so much." She rubbed his hand. A single tear fell down her cheek. All she could do was wait for him to wake up and pray for the best.

* * *

Everyone else was waiting patiently in the waiting room. "Hey Jess." Luke pulled out his wallet and handed Jess some money. "Why don't you go get some snacks?"

Jess took the money. "Sure."

"Can I go with you?" Ruby asked.

Jess looked at Luke for confirmation. Luke looked at Richard and Emily, who both nodded their approval. Luke gave Jess a similar nod.

"Yeah." He held out his hand. "Come on let's go get some junk food."

Ruby took his hand. "I need sugar." She said excitedly and way too eagerly.

"Not too much young lady." Emily told her but was sure it fell on deaf ears. Ruby and Jess were already walking out of the room.

Rory noticed how nervous Luke looked. She got up and sat beside him. "Are you okay?" Rory asked.

"Oh me." Luke looked up at her. "Yeah. I'm fine."

"You don't look fine."

"I'm fine." He felt like he had said that a lot in the last few hours.

"You don't like hospitals, do you?"

Rory was one perceptive young girl.

"Yeah. You are right. Hospitals make me feel sick. I lost both my parents in a hospital. Being here brings up bad memories." He decided to be honest with her.

"You don't have to stay." Rory told him. She wanted him to stay, but she didn't want him to feel sick or nervous.

"I'm not leaving." He told her quickly. "Not going anywhere."

"Thank you for finding my brother. He was pretty upset when he ran out of my grandparents' house."

"That's what your mom said. Everything is going to be okay. Your brother is a very strong kid." Luke hoped to reassure her.

"I think he gets it from my mom. She is one tough cookie."

Luke nodded. That was the truest thing he'd ever heard. "Yeah. I think so too."

Rory's next words were interrupted by her grandfather's voice.

"Christopher."

Rory and Luke both turned to see Christopher walking into the waiting room. Luke really hated him. He was one smug SOB.

"You should not be here." Richard added as he stood up and started to lead Christopher away.

"He's my son. I want to be here for my kids." Christopher argued.

"It's too late for that Christopher." Richard warned. "You aren't needed here."

"You don't get to kick me out of the hospital. As far as I know, you haven't bought it yet."

"Please go." Rory interrupted the two men as she stood between them.

"Rory." Christopher looked at her sadly.

"Please." Rory begged. "We don't need you here." She said calmly. She had never spoken to her father like that before. There had been many times that she had wanted to tell him to leave but never did. She had never been brave enough.

"Rory."

"Please just leave us alone. Let mom raise us in peace."

Emily touched her granddaughter's shoulder to show her support. She wanted Rory to know she was there for her.

"I need you explain what I did." Christopher told her. He wasn't sure what Rory knew.

Rory shook her head. "No. I don't need to know what you did. That doesn't matter to me. All I know is that things are easier when it is just the four of us."

Christopher knew she was right, but he hated he had done this to his family. He made so many mistakes, and now it was too late for him to fix them. "I am so sorry."

Rory shrugged but didn't say anything.

Christopher looked around the room and sighed. "Fine." He gave Rory one last look. "Please know that I love you. I really do love you." He wanted her to know that.

Rory nodded. She knew deep down that he did love her, but she also knew that he had never been up for the responsibility of children.

"Daddy."

Christopher turned around to see his little girl, holding every sweet treat imaginable. "Hey princess."

"What are you doing here?"

"I just came to say goodbye."

"You've got to go to work again." Ruby was used to the excuse.

"Something like that." Christopher gave her a hug. "Don't eat too much sugar. You are already sweet enough."

"I can't make any promises."

Christopher kissed her forehead. "I love you princess."

"Love you." Ruby gave him one last hug.

Christopher walked over to Luke, taking him by surprise. "Take care of my family." He extended his hand. Luke shook it but didn't say anything. Christopher walked past Emily and Richard. "Please keep me updated on Ryan's condition." Christopher hoped that he would.

Richard nodded. He would.

Christopher walked out of the waiting room.

Rory had a feeling it would be a long time before she saw her father again. Emily gave her granddaughter a hug.

"I hope you got chocolate." Rory said with a smile, trying to forget what had just happened.

"A lot of it." Jess handed her a Hershey's bar.

"Awesome."

"How much of my money did you spend?" Luke asked.

"You don't want to know." Jess laughed.

"It was for a good cause." Rory told him as she started to sort through the candy.

* * *

Richard pulled Emily out into the hallway. "That man cheated on our daughter and only God knows what else."

"I feel like such a fool."

"Oh Emily."

"I pushed them together. I made them get married."

"I did too." Richard remembered. "When you get pregnant you get married. That's what I said to her. Over and Over again."

"I ridiculed her for getting a divorce. That's why she took the kids and ran. She couldn't listen to me mock her for the shame she had brought on the family."

"Emily. You and Lorelai will make up."

"I don't know. I just don't know if we will." Emily rested her head on her husband. Richard comforted her. This had been an extremely difficult night for all of them.

All they could do was wait for Ryan to wake up.

* * *

Christopher asked the nurses station where he could find Ryan Gilmore. He played the father card and the nurse gave him the room number. Christopher made his way to the room and saw Lorelai resting her head on Ryan's bed. She was holding his hand and her face was red and splotchy. Ryan still wasn't awake.

Christopher knew that he would wake up. He wanted to see his son one last time. He didn't want to bother them anymore. He sighed and wiped a tear away from his face. This was the best thing for his family.

He walked away.

Lorelai looked up. All she saw was someone walking away. She had a feeling it was Christopher, but for once she wasn't going to go after him. Her only concern was Ryan and her daughters.

* * *

 **Christopher is gone for now!**

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	41. A Good Nap

**You guys are the best! I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 41: A Good Nap**

Lorelai had spent most of the night in Ryan's hospital room. Thankfully the nurses hadn't kicked her out. They let her stay with Ryan the entire night. Ryan still wasn't awake, but his vital signs were improving and his body temperature was almost back to normal. The doctor expected him to wake up soon. Lorelai wished he was already awake. The waiting was killing her. She hated seeing her baby so vulnerable and weak.

She decided to take a break and check on her family. She wanted to see her girls and make sure they were okay.

As she walked into the waiting room, her heart began to melt. It was the sweetest sight she may have ever seen. Sometime during the night, Sookie, Babette, and Ms. Patty had all come to the hospital. She wasn't even sure who had called them, but she was glad they were there. It was incredibly sweet. She didn't want to wake them, even though she couldn't wait to give them all a hug.

She also smiled when she saw Ruby resting in Luke's arms. Lorelai loved seeing her kids with Luke. It felt right. Rory was on the other side of him. She was surprised to see her parents weren't there. She didn't think they would leave until Ryan was awake. Her relationship with her mother wasn't the best, but she knew that her parents loved their grandchildren. There was never a question of that.

"Lorelai." Richard and Emily walked up behind her carrying a lot of coffee.

Lorelai couldn't believe that she felt relieved that they were still there. She wanted them there, even her mother.

"Dad." She took some of the coffee from him and sat it on one of the tables.

"The coffee here is horrible." Emily told her. "We went down to the shop on greenbure. It has exceptional coffee."

"I know. It is some of the best." Lorelai grabbed a cup. "Thank you." She pointed to the room. "When did they get here?"

"A few hours ago." Richard answered. "We didn't want to take you away from Ryan or else we would have told you they were here."

"That was really sweet of them." Lorelai still couldn't believe that they were there. In that moment, she knew no matter what happened that moving them to Stars Hollow had been the best decision she had ever made. Some people wait an entire lifetime to find the kind of compassion and friendship that they had found in that small, weird, little town.

"How is Ryan?" Emily asked.

"He is still getting his beauty rest." Lorelai was surprised she could joke when she was so stressed and tired. "His vital signs are better."

"That's good news. Improving vitals is always a good sign." Richard told her.

"Yeah. We just need him to wake up."

"He will." Richard reassured her. He knew everything was going to be okay.

"Are you hungry?" Emily asked. "We could go get you something to eat."

Lorelai shook her head. She couldn't even think about eating. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You are probably starving. I know you like to eat."

"No. I really am fine." Lorelai told her, hoping her mother would drop it.

"Well if you get hungry please tell me. I'll get you anything that you want."

"Thanks, mom." Lorelai thought the offer was nice.

"Lorelai." Sookie opened her eyes once she heard Lorelai's voice.

The two women embraced. "Oh Lorelai. Do you need anything? I brought cookies."

"I'm fine. Really. I can't believe you are here."

"Where else would I be? My best friend needed me." Sookie hugged her again. "How's are boy?"

"Just waiting for him to wake up." Lorelai told her. She looked at her watch. "What a way to start the new year." She said once she realized it was January 1st. She had completely forgotten. She hoped the beginning of the year would not be any indication of the rest of it.

"Oh sweetie, he is going to wake up. I am sure of it." Sookie rubbed her shoulders. "Oh here." She handed her a bag. "I brought you a change of clothes. I used the key under the turtle."

"Thank you."

Emily watched the interaction. She couldn't believe how close Lorelai was to the woman standing in front of her. They hadn't known each other very long, but Lorelai had hugged the woman that called herself Sookie, in a way that she had never hugged Emily. It was hard for her to see.

"Lorelai." Ms. Patty and Babette both woke up.

"Oh sugah." Babette hugged her. "I know our boy is going to be okay. He is a fighter."

"Thank you all for coming."

"We had to." Patty told her. "We love you."

"I love you guys."

Emily again felt hurt. She wasn't sure Lorelai I had ever told her that before, at least not since she had been older than ten.

"Kirk sends his love." Ms. Patty told her. "He was too emotional for us to bring him."

"We weren't sure how he would do in a hospital." Babette admitted. "And truth be told we didn't want to have to keep up with him."

"Lord knows what that boy could get into in a hospital." Ms. Patty had her hands on her hip and was shaking her head. "He is a lot of work."

"It was just safer to leave him at home." Babette added.

"I agree. It was nice of him to think about us though." Lorelai smiled as she pictured Kirk trying to complete surgery on someone. It was a hilariously scary thought.

"Mommy." Ruby jumped up followed by Rory.

Lorelai held onto her girls. She never wanted to let them go.

"How's my brother?" Ruby asked.

"We are just waiting for him to wake up." Lorelai told her daughters. She didn't add the part about pneumonia. He just needed to wake up first. Right now that was all that mattered to her.

"He just needs to be tickled. He hates being tickled." Ruby smiled at her mother, making Lorelai laugh. "I bet if we tickled him he would wake up for sure."

"We are going to tickle him a lot when he wakes up." Lorelai told her daughter.

"I'm really tired mommy." Ruby hugged her mom again.

"You looked like you were getting a good sleep on Luke." Lorelai looked over at Luke. He gave her a smile. Even when she was exhausted, he thought she was beautiful.

"Yeah but I'm still sleepy."

"I know hon. I am too."

"We could take her home, sugah." Babette offered. "I'll stay with her until you can come home."

Lorelai actually thought that was a good idea.

"Oh." Emily intervened. "I can take the girls back to our house."

Lorelai looked at her mother. It was a nice offer. "Mom, I think it is a good idea for them to go home. To our home."

Again, Emily's feelings were hurt.

"I want to go sleep in my bed." Ruby told her grandmother. "And my stuffed animals probably miss me. They've never slept alone before."

"And I don't mind at all. I love this little one like she was my own. Actually I love all of them. We are family." Babette told Emily. "You never have to worry about your daughter and grandkids with us around. They will never be able to get rid of us." Babette gave Emily a slight hug.

Both Lorelai and Rory shared looks. They knew Emily probably didn't like Babette. She had never been a big fan of hugs. Lorelai remembered.

"I love you, Babette." Ruby gave her a hug. "You are the best."

"You should go too, Rory." Lorelai told her daughter. "You probably could use some rest."

"No way. I'm not leaving." Rory said quickly. "I want to be here when he wakes up."

"Okay, sweets. That's fine with me." Lorelai rubbed her shoulders. She wanted to talk to her about what had happened, anyways. "Alright lovely girl." She picked Ruby up and gave her a hug. "You be good for Babette. I love you." She gave her a quick kiss.

"I love you too, mommy. Give Ryan a kiss for me." Ruby kissed Lorelai's lips. "That's for Ryan."

"I will give him that big kiss and tell him it is from you."

"And a good tickle."

"He'll hate it." Lorelai kissed her little girl.

"Good." Ruby laughed.

"Babette call me if you need anything."

"We will be fine doll face. This little peanut is always a good girl." Babette gave Lorelai a hug. "You call us if you need anything."

"I will. Thank you, Babette."

Ms. Patty wrapped her arms around Lorelai. "You tell that kid he better wake up soon. I need more time to convince him to start dancing. He has great legs."

"I'll tell him." Lorelai smiled at her. She still couldn't believe they had all showed up for her family. It meant everything to her.

"Bye Grandma. Bye Grandpa." Ruby gave her hugs and left with Babette and Ms. Patty. Emily felt like her role as grandmother had been taken away from her, and it made her sad.

"Sookie. You don't have to stay. I know you have Davey at home."

"Jackson is with him. I'm not leaving you. And by the way Mia sends her love."

Lorelai smiled.

"She would be here if she could."

"I understand."

"Michel." Sookie looked up when she saw the Frenchman walking into the waiting room.

"Michel." Lorelai was equally surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"I brought a bunch of stuff from the Inn. Sookie and Mia made me." He gave her several bags of goodies.

"Oh Michel. You old softy." She went to hug him.

"Oh no." He grimaced. "Don't hug me."

She hugged him anyway.

"I have to get back to the Inn, but they wanted you to have these things."

"Thanks, Michel." Lorelai was happy to see him. It was nice of him to show up for her. She knew deep down he really liked her. "This means a lot to me."

"Yeah. Yeah. Tell him to hurry up and get better. I need you both at work."

"I'll tell him." Lorelai smiled.

"Bye Michel." Sookie and Rory both told him.

"Goodbye. Do not call me if you need anything. I will be terribly too busy."

"We will." Sookie waved at him.

He gave her a grumpy wave and walked away.

"Lorelai," Richard touched her shoulder. "Is it okay if your mother and I go sit with Ryan for a little bit?" He asked.

Lorelai nodded. "Sure. I need a little break." She was surprised she had been able to pull herself away from Ryan, but she knew she needed to walk around and get some air. "Please come get me if he wakes up."

"We will." Emily assured her.

Emily and Richard walked out of the waiting room.

"Do you need me to get you anything?" Luke asked. He had been rather quiet.

Lorelai shook her head. She was just glad to have him there. "I just need some air." She looked at Rory. "Do you want to get some air with me?"

Rory nodded. She needed some air too.

"You two should also take a break. I know those chairs aren't comfortable." She told the boys.

"We are fine." Luke told her.

"I mean it." Lorelai pointed. "Get some air. Or see a doctor"

"Okay." Luke gave her a smile. "We will get some air."

"But no doctor?" She questioned.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

"Okay. But when you get a cold..."

"I won't." He interrupted her. "I'll be fine."

"Okay. We will be back shortly."

She didn't know if he would ever know how grateful she was for him. He had saved her boy's life. He was her real life hero.

Mother and daughter turned to leave the waiting room. "Grace." Rory ran towards her friend. She was with her mother or so Rory assumed. She had never met Grace's mom. They looked a lot alike. They both had beautiful blonde hair and blue eyes.

The two girls hugged. Lorelai followed her daughter, surprised to see Grace.

"What are you doing here?" Rory asked.

"She heard about her boyfriend, and she had to be here." Grace's mother responded.

"Boyfriend?" Lorelai questioned. This was the first she had heard of it.

Grace became nervous. "It is a new development." Grace wasn't even sure if he was her boyfriend. She assumed that he was, but was nervous that he didn't want to be her boyfriend. She just hoped that he was okay. She really cared about him.

"Oh." Lorelai felt so out of the loop.

"I'm Shannon, Grace's mother." Shannon extended her hand. "It is so nice to meet you. Grace talks highly of you and your family."

"Well we love having Grace over." Lorelai was no longer sure how she felt about Grace. She found it weird that she was okay with Ryan dating Lane, but she was not okay with him dating Grace. Grace seemed too much like her at that age, and that terrified her.

"How is he?" Grace asked.

"His vitals are better. Now we are just waiting for him to wake up. He loves a good nap." Lorelai joked. It was the only way she was keeping herself calm.

"He is stubborn."

"So stubborn." Lorelai added.

"We are going to get some air." Rory told her. "But we will be back."

"Okay." Grace smiled. "We will just wait for you."

Rory nodded and followed her mom out of the waiting room. "Boyfriend?" She looked at Rory.

"They just decided."

"Just?" Lorelai questioned.

"At Christmas."

"That was a week ago."

"Mom."

Lorelai sighed. "I just think that I should know when my son has a girlfriend. I'm the mother. The mother should not be the last to know."

"I'm sure you aren't the last to know." Rory tried to make things better. "I don't think he told grandma yet."

Lorelai gave her a look. "Mean."

Rory smiled. "How are you holding up?"

"Oh kid, I was just about to ask you the same thing." They finally made it outside and sat on a bench. "I know this hasn't been easy for you."

"I'm fine." Rory told her mother. It wasn't a complete lie. She was worried about her brother. She had never seen him so upset. She was worried about her mom. But other than that she was okay.

Lorelai gave her a look.

"Honestly, mom. I'm fine."

Lorelai wasn't sure that she believed her. She sighed and patted Rory on the knee. "I know you heard a lot of things about your dad." Lorelai didn't even know how to begin this conversation. She never wanted the kids to know what Christopher had done. "Hon. Your dad."

"Mom, I don't want to know."

"What?"

Rory shook her head. "I'm mad at dad. I heard Ryan say that he was cheater and a gambler. I always expected that he had done something like that. You wouldn't have just divorced him without a reason."

"Rory."

"I just want him to stay away from us." Rory admitted. "That's what I told him."

Lorelai's eyes narrowed. "When did you tell him that?" She knew she must have missed something.

"He came to the hospital. I told him to stay away. Things are so much better when he isn't around."

"Oh Rory. I'm so sorry." Lorelai was glad that she hadn't seen him at the hospital. She needed sometime to process all of the things Christopher had done.

"Don't." Rory stopped her. "Don't apologize. You are the best mom in the world. We don't need dad."

"I've always wanted you to have a good relationship with your father."

"I don't think that is going to happen anytime soon, and that's okay with me." Rory rested her head on Lorelai's shoulder.

Lorelai ran her fingers through Rory's hair. She knew that she needed to tell Rory about the money. It was going to come up again, especially when it came time to pay for Chilton. But at that moment, she couldn't do it. She couldn't tell her.

"We are going to be okay." Rory encouraged. "Ryan is going to wake up, and everything is going to be okay."

"Did you know that he was drinking?" Lorelai asked.

Rory shook her head. "No. Maybe I should have kept a closer eye on him." Rory thought. She felt a little guilty.

"Oh no. Do not blame yourself for this. You are not responsible for your brother. If anyone should have been watching him it was me. I am his mother."

"We both know no one can keep up with him."

"Well when he wakes up he is going to hear about it." Lorelai held Rory tight. "I never want to have this feeling again." She admitted to her daughter. "I'm going to put you all in a bubble." She laughed.

Rory smiled.

"I'm not kidding." Lorelai held her even tighter.

Rory knew that if she could, she would put them all in a bubble. That was just how much she loved them.

* * *

Lorelai and Rory walked into the waiting room. Lorelai was surprised to see her mother and father. "I thought you two were in with Ryan." She didn't want him to be alone for too long.

"Luke asked if he could have a minute with him."

Lorelai smiled. "Oh okay."

"Mom I want to see Ryan." Rory said.

Lorelai nodded. "Of course." She looked around the waiting room. Grace and Jess were both reading. Grace's mother and Sookie were missing. "Where did Sookie go?"

"She went to call her husband." Emily answered. "Lorelai, do you have a second?"

"I need to take Rory to see Ryan."

"This won't take long." Emily led her to a corner.

"Okay." Lorelai sighed. She never knew what her mother was going to say or if she was going to like what her mother had to say.

"After Ryan gets better and goes home, I would like to have coffee with you."

Lorelai was a little surprised. "You had to bring me to the corner to ask me that."

"Lorelai, please." Emily looked at her daughter with pleading in her eyes. "Take this seriously."

"Fine. Sure. We can have a coffee."

"Great. We really do need to talk about all of this."

Lorelai nodded. Her mother was probably right. "I should get back to Ryan."

"Of course. We will be right here waiting."

"Okay." Lorelai walked away from her mom. "Ready," she asked Rory.

Rory nodded and followed her mom out of the waiting room.

* * *

In Ryan's waiting room, Luke was sitting by his bed. He was squeamish. He really did hate hospitals and seeing Ryan in the hospital bed was even worse. "You scared the hell out of me." Luke told a sleeping Ryan. "You got to wake up. I need you at the diner. Don't tell Jess this but you are the best worker that I've got." Luke smiled. "Speaking of Jess, he needs you too. You have given him something I don't think he has ever had before. A friend."

"When I brought him to Stars Hollow, I wanted him to make friends. I think you are a pretty good one." Luke sighed. "And your mom. She is a mess. You really put her through the ringer. I think you have met your quota."

"Me too." Lorelai said as she and Rory walked into the room.

Luke stood up. Startled to see them. "Hey."

"Hi." She smiled at him.

Rory sat next to her brother. "Wake up." She punched him gently. "I need you to drive me crazy."

Lorelai smiled and led Luke to the hallway. She gave him a hug. "Thank you. Thank you so much for finding him. The doctor said that we were lucky that he was found when he was. That's because of you."

"Lorelai. I didn't do anything."

"Don't be chivalrous, Luke. You saved my kid. I owe you for life."

Luke shook his head. "You owe me nothing."

Lorelai was about to speak but was interrupted by Rory.

"Mom." Rory yelled.

Lorelai walked into the room and let out a sigh of relief when she saw her son's eyes. "Ryan." Tears streamed down her face. She couldn't control them.

"Don't cry, mom." He said weakly.

Lorelai ran to his bed and wrapped her arms around her son. "Oh baby. I love you."

Luke stepped out of the room to get the nurse.

Lorelai and Rory hugged Ryan. They were relieved that he was awake.

"Don't you ever scare me like this again." She warned him with another hug.

Everything was going to be okay.

* * *

 **Okay so let me know what you thought! Thank goodness he finally woke up! Was there ever any doubt!**


	42. Short Leash

**Sorry it took me so long to get this posted. I hope you all enjoy it.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 42: Short Leash**

It had been a little over a week since the New Year's Eve party catastrophe, and four days since Ryan had gotten out of the hospital. Ryan knew they would have let him out sooner if his mother hadn't insisted the doctor keep him longer and run every tests possible. He felt like a pin cushion. Lorelai hadn't left his bedside since he had woken up. She was still worried about pneumonia, but the doctor assured her that he should be fine. Lorelai was just practicing her right to be overprotected. Ryan let her know that she was doing a great job.

Ryan wished that she would do a worse job. He was beginning to feel suffocated. Lorelai wouldn't leave his side. She had even slept on his floor the first two nights that he was home. Ruby had joined her on the second night. She treated it like a slumber party. Ryan was overjoyed (Haha). He had finally convinced her that he could be left alone while he was sleeping. Although, she did make him sleep with his door open.

On his third day at home, Lorelai sat Ryan down and had the difficult conversation about drinking, driving, and running away. Lorelai let him know how disappointed she was in him. Ryan admitted that he drank because he didn't want to be at the party. Lorelai understood that feeling more than he would ever know, but it still did not excuse his behavior. He was way too young to be drinking and should never ever get behind the wheel of a car after he had been drinking. It was dangerous, irresponsible, and illegal. And she knew that he knew better.

They also talked about Christopher. Lorelai blamed herself. She should have made him talk about it after he overheard their conversation. Ryan still didn't really want to talk about it, but Lorelai made him. He was mad at his dad for everything that he had done. He told her that he didn't want anything to do with Christopher. Lorelai told him that it was a good idea to talk to his dad. No matter how mad he was, Christopher was still his father, and that was never going to change. She would support him no matter what decision he made. She would always have his back. He told her he would think about it. He couldn't make any promises. Lorelai understood that.

Lorelai let him know that he was on the shortest leash possible. Ryan thought it was so short, he wasn't even sure it was a leash. It was more like his mom's hand on his collar. He was only allowed to go to school without her and that was only because she couldn't convince the teachers to let her follow him around. He knew it was because she had been so worried about him, but he knew he was going to get tired of it rather quickly.

For the first time in his life, he was actually excited about going back to school after winter break. He would get to see Grace. He had only seen her twice since the accident. Both times had been while he was in the hospital. He was ready to see her.

He and Lorelai had also talked about his newfound relationship with Grace. He promised that he would have told her, but he hadn't had the chance. Things happened so quickly. Lorelai believed him and laid down all the ground rules. They would apply once he was no longer on a short leash.

"Rory." Ryan knocked on his sister's door. "Hurry up. It is time to go."

Lorelai walked into the kitchen. "Total role reversal here. Kind of creepy." She laughed.

"I'm ready to go."

"You can't go without me." She reminded him.

Ryan furrowed his brow. "You don't have to take me to school. I'll be fine."

Lorelai shook her head. "We talked about this. I'm taking you to school, and then I'm picking you up after."

"Mom." Ryan complained. "Come on. I'll be fine."

"This isn't up for discussion." Lorelai grabbed a cup of coffee. "I'm going to pick you up from school, then we will grab Ruby, and head back to the Inn. You can start your homework."

Ryan rolled his eyes and sighed. "You are really going to make me go back to the Inn with you."

Lorelai nodded.

"Ugh." Ryan grumbled.

"What's wrong with him?" Rory asked as she walked out of her bedroom.

"Mom is ruining my life." He said dramatically.

Lorelai smiled and did a fist pump. "Yes. That's been my plan since the day you were born. Fifteen years isn't too bad."

Both she and Rory laughed. Ryan was not amused.

"Alright. Let's go." Lorelai ruffled his hair. "Maybe I can ruin Rory's life too. Two for one. Not too bad."

Ryan rolled his eyes and followed his mom and sisters out of the house. This was not fair.

* * *

Lorelai walked into the kitchen. It was her first official day back. She had taken some time off to be with Ryan and the girls.

"Lorelai." Sookie greeted her with a hug. "I'm so glad you are back. How's our boy?"

"He is doing better. Mad at me. But nothing is new." Lorelai smiled. "I have missed your coffee."

"Why is he mad at you?"

"Because I am not letting him get away with drinking and driving. I can't."

"You're right." Mia said as she walked in, hearing the conversation. "You have to remain strong. Teenagers know how to make you feel guilty." Mia gave her a hug. "I have missed you."

"Oh I have missed you too, Mia." Lorelai smiled at the older woman. "I'm going to try to remain strong. I feel like he is turning me into my mother."

"We all turn into our mothers." Mia warned her.

"Oh no. Mia. I cannot turn into my mother."

"She didn't seem so bad at the hospital." Sookie noted. "She was very nice to me."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Probably because she felt like she had to." Lorelai told her. "No offense, but that is just how my mother is. She comes off as nice, but then she sinks her teeth in like a vampire."

"Lorelai." Mia gave her a look.

Lorelai shrugged. "It is the truth."

"Have you met her for coffee yet?" Sookie asked, remembering that Emily had requested it.

Lorelai shook her head. "No."

"I think that might be a good idea." Mia spoke up.

Lorelai gave her a look.

"She is your mother." Mia reminded her.

"I know."

"You only get the one." Mia patted her on the back. "It might be good for your relationship. Maybe she wants to apologize."

"Ha. I doubt it. My mother doesn't apologize."

"Everyone is capable of change, Lorelai. Don't ever forget that." Mia hoped the young girl would listen to her. "A cup of coffee might be the thing that saves your relationship.

Lorelai sighed. She wasn't so sure that Mia was right. Her mother was never going to change. It wasn't possible.

* * *

Grace greeted Ryan with a sweet kiss. "I'm so glad you are okay."

He reached for her hand. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you more." She smiled. She liked the feeling of having a boyfriend.

As they walked down the hall, Ryan felt like everyone was staring at him. "This is weird. Are they staring at us?"

Grace shook her head. "I think they are staring at you."

"Why me?" He stopped walking.

She gave him a pointed look.

"Oh. They heard about what I did." Ryan closed his eyes. "That sucks."

"It's not a big deal. You have to remember that this is a small town." She reminded him. "If one person in this town knows something about you, everyone in this town knows about it."

"Great."

"You're alive." Jess joked. He noticed that they were holding hands. He guessed they were serious about dating. Jess still couldn't get over this feeling he had about them being together. It was weird. Ryan was his best friend. He couldn't like Grace. He would not ruin his friendship, especially not over a girl.

"Yep."

"I tried to visit you, but Uncle Luke said that your mom wanted you to rest." Jess told him.

They made it to their lockers. Ryan opened his. "That figures. I feel like I'm on house arrest. She won't let me do anything without her. I'm surprised she's not following me around school."

"Isn't that her?" Jess pointed behind him and then laughed when Ryan looked. "Got ya."

"That's not funny." Ryan closed his locker after getting his books.

"I'm having a back to school party on Friday." Grace told him. "You have to come. So do you Jess."

Ryan frowned. "There is no way that she is going to let me go." He knew that was true. She had really laid down the law this time.

"I thought she was cool." Grace said.

"He got drunk and scared the shit out of her." Jess said bluntly. "You kind of deserve it."

"Thanks a lot, Jess." Ryan gave him a look.

"Oh come on man. You know it is the truth. You didn't see it, but she was a nervous wreck the whole time you were asleep." Jess just wanted to be honest with him.

"I know that. It just sucks."

"Yeah. It did for her too." Jess said as he walked off.

Ryan grumbled. "What's his problem?"

Grace shrugged. "I don't know. He'll get over it."

"Yeah."

"Walk me to class."

"Sure."

"You promise to at least try to convince your mom to let you come to the party."

Ryan nodded. "Yeah. Maybe she will be over it by Friday. I'll wait until then to ask."

"Good. It wouldn't be a fun party if you weren't there."

Ryan and Grace held hands as they walked down the hall.

* * *

Rory was sitting in her first period class. It was one of the classes she didn't have with any of her friends. It was her least favorite.

"Alright class. Settle down." Mrs. Franklin said as she walked into class. "We have a new student joining us this semester." Mrs. Franklin pointed to the door. Rory looked up. This was the first time in her life that she had actually noticed a boy. He was very handsome. "Everyone this is Dean Forrester. He joins us from Chicago. I'm sure you will all make him feel welcome."

Rory couldn't stop looking at him.

"Dean you can take a seat next to Rory." She pointed to the seat to the left of Rory.

Dean did as he was instructed. "Hey Rory." He said with a smile.

She tried to speak but was unable to do so. She just smiled stupidly. He gave her a look before turning towards the front of the class. Rory sighed. She was such an idiot. She should have said hey. It wasn't that hard to say. It was only a three letter word. Super easy to say. She felt so dumb.

After class Rory walked to her locker and grabbed her books.

"Hi."

She looked up to see Dean standing in front of her.

"Hi." She said nervously. Before she knew what was happening, several of her books fell out of her locker. "Oh no."

"Oh. Here. Let me help you."

"Oh I got it."

They both leaned down to get the books and hit each other in the head.

"Ow." They said in unison.

Dean laughed. "Here."

"Thanks." She said as he handed her the books. "I appreciate your help."

"Yeah. No problem." Dean tried to play it cool. "I just wanted to officially introduce myself."

"Right. Yes. You are Dean." Rory couldn't believe how nervous she was. She felt dumb.

"Yeah. And you are Rory."

"Yes Rory. Well really Lorelai. I'm named after my mother. Her name is Lorelai. She was naming my twin brother after my dad and she wanted to name me after herself. She thought it was a fair trade since she was the one that carried us for over nine months. I like it. It is a good name. Rory is a good name too. I like the name Rory. I like my brother's name too. His name is Ryan. Oh and my sister. Her name is Ruby. She is six." Rory finally stopped babbling.

Dean laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing." Dean said quickly. "I like that all of your names start with an R. That's creative."

"That's my mom for you. She is pretty creative. You would like her. She's great."

"I can imagine." Dean could not stop staring at her eyes. She had the most beautiful eyes. "So what is there to do in this town?"

"Oh there is always something fun to do here." Rory told him as she shut her locker door. "There's a winter slash Valentine's Day festival coming up in February."

"This seems like a very unique town."

"Oh you have no idea." Rory smiled.

She and Dean walked down the hallway.

"My family moved here from Hartford last summer. It has been a crazy ride, but a good one."

"My dad got transferred here. I haven't been happy about it. But I'm beginning to think that it won't be too bad." He looked at Rory and smiled when he said it.

The bell rang.

"I've got Spanish." Rory told him.

"Oh man. I've got math." Dean said sadly. "I guess I'll see you later."

"Yeah sure."

Dean turned away and then turned back. "Where is room 203?"

"Down the hall to the left." Rory pointed.

"Thanks Lorelai." He gave her one last smile before walking away.

Rory couldn't stop smiling.

"Rory. Rory." Lane snapped her fingers.

"Hey."

"What has you in la la land?" Lane asked.

"Oh nothing."

"I think it was that boy I just saw you talking too. Who was that?"

"Oh no. That was no one."

"Rory."

"His name is Dean." Rory smiled shyly.

"He is cute." Lane told her. "Really cute."

Rory shrugged and bit her bottom lip.

"I think you like him."

"No Lane. I don't know him."

"But you want to know him." Lane teased.

Rory nodded. "I don't know. Maybe."

"Ooh. This is so exciting." Lane squealed.

* * *

Lorelai and Ruby walked into the Diner. They weren't extremely busy, which was the usual at three in the afternoon.

"Luke." Ruby ran to the counter.

Luke handed her a chocolate milkshake. "One chocolate milkshake."

"You already have it ready." Ruby said excitedly.

"Of course. I had a feeling you were coming." Luke smiled at the little girl, and then looked at Lorelai. "Hi."

"Hi." Lorelai smiled at him. He was so good with her kids. "How's the cold?"

Luke sniffled. "Much better."

"I still think you should have gone to the doctor."

"I'm fine. The over the counter meds worked just fine."

"Mommy says that you are stubborn." Ruby interjected.

Luke shook his head. "Well you should tell your mommy that it takes one to know one."

Lorelai gave him a glare.

"I'm not telling her that." Ruby said with her hands on her hips. "I don't want to get in trouble."

"She's a good daughter." Lorelai kissed her forehead. "I'm glad you are feeling better."

"Me too."

She leaned across the counter and gave him a quick kiss.

"Really glad you finally feel comfortable enough to do that." She hadn't kissed him because of his cold.

"Not me." Ruby made a face. "I'm trying to eat."

"That she gets from Ryan." Luke noted. It had sounded exactly like something Ryan would say.

"Speaking of Ryan. I need to go pick him up from school."

"I bet he loves that."

"Oh he is overjoyed. He is probably jumping for joy waiting on me." Lorelai pointed to Ruby. "Can you watch her for a few minutes?"

"You bet."

"Be good."

"I'm always good." Ruby smiled. "Right, Luke?"

"Always." Luke smiled at the little Gilmore.

"Thank you." Lorelai said as she walked out of the diner.

"Oh thank goodness she is gone." Ruby hopped down from her stool and grabbed her bag.

"What are you doing?" Luke asked her, intrigued.

"I need your help with a super-secret mission."

"Super-secret?"

"Yes. It is for mommy, but she can't know about it. No one can know about it."

"Oh."

"You have to help me." Ruby handed him an envelope. "You are the only one for the job."

Luke smiled. There was never a dull moment with the Gilmore's, especially Ruby. "I'll do whatever I can."

"You're the best Luke."

Luke opened the envelope and smiled.

"Don't open it here." She stopped him. "I wrote instructions for you. Open it later. You only have a few months."

"Okay." Luke might have his work cut out for him.

* * *

Lorelai walked to the high school to find her son and Grace kissing. She had immediate flashbacks to her teenage years and making out with Christopher in a similar spot in her high school. She shook at the memory.

"Ah ahem." She cleared her throat to make her presence known.

"Hey mom."

"Hi Miss Gilmore." Grace said as she pulled away from Ryan. "It is good to see you."

"Good to see you too, Grace." Lorelai looked at her son. "You ready?"

"Sure." Ryan looked at Grace. "See you tomorrow."

Grace nodded. "Yeah. See you tomorrow."

"How was school?"

"Fine." Ryan looked back at Grace.

"Do you have a lot of homework?"

"A little."

"Well we have got to go get Ruby from the Diner and then we can go home."

"Sure."

"So do you always make-out with Grace like that in public?" Lorelai asked. She couldn't keep it in any longer.

"Mom." Ryan groaned. "We were just kissing."

"Oh. That looked like more than just kissing to me."

"Mom. Please. It was just a kiss."

"Teenage mom, here." She pointed to herself. "I know kissing," she puckered her lips and gave the sky a peck. "And kissing," she used her hand to demonstrate what she had seen the teenagers doing.

"Oh mom. Stop." Ryan was embarrassed. "Seriously. That's enough."

"Ryan. I just want to make sure that you are careful."

"It was just a kiss, and if you didn't have to pick me up after school then you wouldn't have seen it." Ryan grumbled.

"Well maybe you should think about everyone else seeing it. I'm sure they don't want to see it either."

"I got it." Ryan said as the approached the Diner. "Is this lecture over? Can I go in?"

"It wasn't a lecture."

"Felt like one."

"I'm not a professor." Lorelai argued. "Go in. Get you something to go."

"Alright." Ryan walked in. Lorelai was about to follow him when her phone went off. She knew Luke's rule about phones, so she answered it outside.

"Hello."

"Lorelai." Emily said over the phone. Lorelai made a face and remained silent. "Lorelai, are you there?"

"Yes. Mother. I'm here." Lorelai sighed. She knew what this was about.

"You hadn't gotten back with me on coffee so I thought I would call to schedule it."

"Oh." Lorelai was dreading coffee. She really didn't want to hear anything her mother had to say.

"How does Friday work for you?"

"I don't know mom. I'm really busy this week."

"Great." Emily acted like she hadn't heard what her daughter said. "I'll come Friday morning. I can get the address from your father."

"Mom. Wait."

"Lorelai, we need to do this." Emily said seriously.

"Fine." Lorelai grimaced. "Friday sounds great."

"Wonderful. See you then." Emily hung up the phone.

Luke walked outside. "Hey."

"Hey. What are you doing out here?"

"I wanted to ask you on an official date." Luke smiled at her. "We had promised ourselves we would go out after Christmas."

"But my son's accident stopped that."

"Yeah. So I was thinking Friday night would be a good time to finally make good on our plan."

Lorelai smiled. "I really want too. But." She sighed. "Ryan."

"What about Ryan?"

"I don't want to let him out of my sight. I know if I leave him at home alone he won't stay there."

"Then don't leave him home alone." He made it sound so easy.

"We are not having our first date at my house with my fifteen year old." Lorelai told him. She wanted some alone time with Luke. "I want our date to be just the two of us."

"Ask Sookie to watch him." Luke suggested.

Lorelai laughed. "You want me to get him a babysitter? He would hate it."

"It is either that or leave him at home alone and trust him because you and I are going on a date Friday night."

"Is that right?" Lorelai smiled and reached for his hand.

Luke pulled her closer to him. "That is absolutely right, and I can't wait. I've got plans."

"Plans? What kinds of plans?"

"You will just have to wait and see." He gave her a kiss.

"I'm so glad that cold has gone away." She gave him another kiss. She couldn't wait until their first official date. It was going to be perfect.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	43. Iris

**This is a pretty long chapter! I hope you all enjoy it. It is one of my favorites!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 43: Iris**

Friday morning came rather quickly. Ryan had been on his best behavior all week. Lorelai had a feeling he was up to something, and of course her mother's intuition had been right.

Rory walked out of her bedroom and into the kitchen. It was a scene she had never witnessed in their kitchen. There appeared to be every kind of breakfast food known to man. There were pancakes, eggs, pop tarts, and bacon. "What is all of this? How did you even know how to make all of this?"

"I actually paid attention when Iris tried to teach us how to cook." Ryan had always liked Iris. The whole family actually liked her. She was a gift from Emily. Lorelai did not think it was necessary for them to have a maid, but Emily insisted, as Emily always did.

"Seriously?" Rory wasn't convinced.

"Yes." Ryan answered.

"Where did you get all the ingredients? We don't keep this much food in the fridge."

"I picked it up from Doose's yesterday." Ryan told her.

"Without mom noticing?" Rory knew how close their mom had been keeping her brother. They had almost morphed into one person.

"Actually Grace picked it up for me."

"Oh. Your girlfriend." Rory said in a sing-song-way.

Ryan rolled his eyes.

"Why did you need all of this stuff?"

"I wanted mom to have a nice homemade breakfast." Ryan smiled. "You can have a little bit of it. But save the best for mom. She deserves it."

"You are trying to bribe her?" Rory put it all together. "And you know the way to mom's heart is through her stomach."

Ryan smiled widely.

"You are the worst." Rory took a piece of bacon.

"I think mom is going to love this." Ryan was keeping his fingers crossed. He really wanted to go to that party.

"I think mom is going to see right through it, and you totally wasted your time and money." Rory let him know as she grabbed another piece of bacon. "This is really good though. Thanks."

"Wow." Ruby walked out of her bedroom. "Is Iris here?" Ruby became excited.

"No. Ryan cooked." Rory still thought it was kind of funny.

"Oh." Ruby frowned. "I miss Iris." Ruby grabbed a piece of bacon.

"Hey. Stop that. The rest is for mom." Ryan told his sisters, but he knew his protests would fall on deaf ears. They never listened to him.

Ruby ran out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

Lorelai was in the bathroom putting on her make-up.

"Mommy." Ruby ran into the bathroom still holding a piece of bacon.

"Hey bab.." She noticed the bacon. "Where did that come from? Is bacon falling from the sky? So cool." She laughed.

"Ryan."

"Ryan. My Ryan. Your brother Ryan." Lorelai picked her up. "Why did Ryan cook bacon?" She carried the little girl and sat her on the bed while she put on her jewelry.

"He cooked breakfast. A lot of it." Ruby told her mother. "Can I wear one of your bracelets?"

"Sure kiddo." She grabbed a cute pink bracelet from her pile of bracelets. "Here you go. This goes perfect with your dress."

Ruby was wearing a cute yellow dress with pink and purple flowers, pink leggings and brown boots. Lorelai was proud of her daughter's fashion sense. Rory had probably helped her get dressed, but she knew Ruby had picked the outfit the night before. "So do we know why Ryan cooked breakfast?" Lorelai was curious. It had to be part of some plan.

Ruby shook her head and hopped down from the bed. "I think he is trying to bribe you." Ruby smiled. "That's what I heard Rory say."

"A bribe huh?" Lorelai let a smile come across her face. "Do you know what a bribe is?"

Ruby shrugged. "Nope. I'm just happy to have bacon."

"You are a girl after my own heart." Lorelai laughed. "Let's go downstairs and see if your brother is good at bribes."

"He didn't make pie." Ruby told her. "We love pie."

"Oh amateur mistake." Lorelai took Ruby's hand and they walked downstairs. "Pie is the real way to our hearts."

"Any kind." Ruby smiled.

Rory walked into the living room. "Good morning, Ror." She gave her daughter a quick kiss.

"Hey mom." Rory was still snacking on the bacon.

"I hope you didn't eat all the bacon."

"Of course not." She grabbed her bag.

"Do you mind walking Ruby to school? I need to talk to your brother."

"Sure." She looked at Ruby. "Let's get your jacket."

"Okay." She gave her mom. "Love you mommy."

"Love you too, sweetie."

"Good luck with the bribe." Ruby smiled at her mom and grabbed her bag.

"Here." Rory put Ruby's jacket on her.

"So." Lorelai whispered in Rory's ear. "How much food is in that kitchen?"

Rory smiled. "He's good. He's real good. Stay strong." Rory gave her words of encouragement and a kiss.

Lorelai sighed. Her kids knew her too well. She braced herself and walked into the kitchen. There was a lot of food. Some of her favorite things. "Hey kid."

"Good morning, mom." Ryan said happily. "How was your night? Did you sleep well?"

"Yes. I slept great. What's with all the food?" Lorelai grabbed a pop tart and waited for his answer.

"Can I get you cup of coffee?"

"Yes. What's with all the food?" Lorelai asked again.

Ryan grabbed his mom's favorite coffee cup and poured her a cup. "Here you go. Just the way you like it."

"Ryan." She nudged him.

"Grace is having a party tonight, and I was hoping that I could go." Ryan said quickly deciding to rip off the band aid and just be honest.

"No." Lorelai said even quicker without even having to think about it.

"Mom, come on. Think about it." Ryan pleaded.

"I don't need to think about it." Lorelai told him. "I told you that for the time being the only place you can go without me is school."

"That's not fair." Ryan sighed.

"Um yes it is. Do I need to remind you what happened last week?" Lorelai hoped she didn't. She was tired of thinking about it.

"No." Ryan rolled his eyes. "I know it was a big deal, but I've learned my lesson. I was the one that had to stay in the hospital after all."

Lorelai sighed. "The fact that you just said that makes it clear to me that you have not learned your lesson."

"Her parents are going to be there." Ryan hoped that would help the situation. "There isn't going to be any alcohol. Besides, I promised I would never drink again."

"That is a big promise Ryan."

"I plan on keeping it."

Lorelai thought about his request. "No. You can stay home tonight."

"Are you going to make Rory stay home too?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No. Rory can go. She isn't in trouble."

"That's not fair."

"Yes it is fair." Lorelai told him. "And don't say that I treat Rory better than you because that's not true."

"Will you just think about it today?" Ryan asked again.

"I will think about it, but I'm not going to change my mind." Lorelai was sure of that. He needed to learn his lesson. "You are staying home tonight with Sookie and Ruby."

"What?" Ryan's eyes grew large. "You aren't even going to be here."

"I have a date with Luke."

"So you got me a babysitter?" Ryan was mad.

"Sookie is watching Ruby." Lorelai lied a little.

"But she is also here to make sure I don't go anywhere. This is ridiculous." Ryan sighed.

"I disagree." Lorelai grabbed the last piece of bacon. "We need to leave in five minutes. Make sure you clean this up." She walked out of the kitchen. Ryan followed her.

"How long am I grounded?" Ryan asked her. It had never been discussed.

"I never said you were grounded." Lorelai looked for her purse. "You can go wherever you want, as long as I am with you." It seemed reasonable to her.

"Feels a lot like being grounded." Ryan crossed his arms.

"Ryan. I'm not arguing about this any longer." Lorelai finally found her purse. "I'm the mom. You're the kid. End of discussion."

"Wow." Ryan shook his head. "You sounded just like grandma." He turned and walked back into the kitchen.

Lorelai's eyes grew large. "Low blow, Ryan Gilmore. Low blow." She couldn't believe he said that. He was just trying to manipulate her. It was kind of working.

* * *

The bell on the Diner door rang and Luke looked up from one of his customers to see Lorelai walk in. A smile crept across his face. She looked more and more beautiful to him every single day. Although, she didn't look too happy. "That will be right out." He told his customer as he walked back behind the counter. "Hey." He greeted Lorelai.

"Hi." She took a seat at the counter.

"What's wrong?" He could tell something was bothering her.

"Nothing."

"You aren't a very good liar."

"Ryan told me I was acting like my mother." She said dramatically. "My mother. Can you believe that? I am not like my mother."

"You know the kid is just trying to get his way." Luke poured her a cup of coffee. "You know that and he knows that. You've got to stay strong."

She took the cup of coffee from him. "I don't like that he compared me to my mother. I've tried really hard in my life to be nothing like her." She took a sip of the coffee. "I can't believe he had the nerve. It's the worst thing he could have said to me. He could have called me fat, ugly, mean, the wicked witch of the west or anything else but my mother."

"He knows that." Luke told her again.

"I'm supposed to be the cool mom. Maybe I'm overreacting." Lorelai sighed heavily. "Maybe I should just let him do whatever the hell he wants to do. That's so much easier. Next time he asks me something I'm just going to say yes." Lorelai nodded. "Great idea." She pointed to Luke. "Mom, can I rob a bank?" She spoke in her best Ryan impression. "Sure go ahead. I don't care. Mom, can I hitchhike to Oregon. Sure I don't care. I'm cool." Lorelai smiled. "Perfect plan. I'll win mother of the freaking year."

Luke shook his head. "You are overreacting."

"I know. That's what I just said."

"No. You aren't overreacting about what Ryan did. He scared the hell out of me, and he isn't even my kid. I can only imagine how you felt. You are doing the right thing. Kids are master manipulators, but you Lorelai Gilmore are not one to be manipulated. You've got to remember that."

"I want to be the cool mom."

"You are the coolest mom I know." He leaned across the counter and kissed her forehead. "And don't you ever forget that."

Lorelai smiled. Luke always knew how to make her feel better.

"So are you ready for our date?" He decided to change the subject. "I've got big plans."

"You do?" She was excited.

"Yep."

"Like what?" She was curious.

"It is a surprise."

"I don't like surprises."

"Yes you do. You will like this one."

"Are you sure? Because if I don't like it then there may not be a second date." She warned him with a smile.

"Lucky for you this is technically our second date." He smiled. "And I'm sure it will lead to a third."

"I can't wait." Lorelai smiled him. She knew no matter what he had planned, she was going to have a good time. It didn't matter what they did because she really cared about Luke. He was such an amazing man. "But first I have to have coffee with my mother." She continued to drink the coffee he had given her.

"Well you better stop drinking that." He pointed.

"No. I need to drink at least three more cups before I am ready to be in a room with my mother." She rolled her eyes. "Maybe I can call and tell her I've come down with malaria and we have to postpone our coffee for three thousand years."

"Lorelai." Luke gave her a look. "Maybe it won't be that bad."

"Have you ever said that when you have to get a root canal from the dentist?" Lorelai asked. "No. Because coffee with my mother is worse than getting a root canal. I would rather have three root canals than coffee with my Moootheeer." She dragged the word mother out. "It is going to be awful. I already know that."

"Lorelai, you just have to suck it up."

"Luke."

"You can do this, and a couple of hours later, you and I will go on our date and have a wonderful time."

"Promise."

"Promise." Luke smiled at her. He couldn't wait to go on a real date with her. He knew that it was going to be perfect.

* * *

"She is being so unfair." Ryan complained as he walked down the hallway with Jess and Grace. "Your mom and dad are going to be there. It isn't like anything bad is going to happen." He grumbled. "She needs to trust me."

Jess rolled his eyes. He was so tired of hearing Ryan complain. It was all he had done all week.

"I know she's upset about what happened last week. But I am fine."

"There is always next time." Grace reassured him. "My parents let me throw these kind of things all the time."

"But I want to come tonight."

"I know. I want you to come too." Grace squeezed his hand.

"Maybe I can sneak out. Sookie isn't the most observant person in the world."

"Oh my God." Jess stopped walking.

"What?" Ryan stopped and turned towards Jess. "What is your deal? You have kind of been a jerk all week."

"Me. I'm not the jerk." Jess sighed. "You're the jerk."

"Jess." Ryan didn't understand what was wrong with him.

"I've got to get to class." Jess stormed off. He didn't have time to deal with Ryan.

"What's wrong with him?" Ryan asked Grace.

"I don't know." Grace shrugged.

"I'll figure something out." Ryan turned his attention back to Grace's party. He would worry about Jess later.

* * *

"I still can't believe my mama said that I could go. It is like some kind of miracle." Lane was really excited as she waited on Rory at her locker. "She never lets me go."

"I think it is because her parents are going to be there." Rory grabbed her books out of her locker.

"Yeah that probably has something to do with it. She has already called Grace's mom several times."

"Hey." Dean approached the two girls.

"Dean. Hi." Rory smiled as she became nervous. "How are you?"

"Great." He looked at Lane. "I'm Dean."

"Lane. I'm Rory's best friend."

"Cool." He smiled. "I hope to be Rory's friend too."

"You should come with us to Grace's party tonight. She is one of our other friends." Lane told him. "We would all have a lot of fun." She could tell that Rory liked him.

Dean looked at Rory to see if it was okay. She smiled at him nervously. "Sure. I think you would have a lot of fun."

"Okay."

"Here." Lane took a piece of paper and wrote down Grace's address. "It starts at 6."

"Great. I can't wait. See you later Rory."

"See you Dean." Rory said as he walked away. She then turned to Lane. "Why did you do that?"

"Do what?" Lane was confused.

"You invited him to Grace's. Now I'm going to have to dress really cute."

"You always dress cute. Lorelai Gilmore is your mother."

"He makes me so nervous." Rory admitted.

"Because you like him."

"No."

"Yes."

"Okay. Yes. Maybe. He is really cute." Rory blushed.

"Yes. He is really cute." Lane thought. "And the two of you would be really cute together."

"He doesn't like me." Rory was sure of that.

"I think he does." Lane was sure of it. "And I think the two of you will have a lot of fun at Grace's party."

Rory sighed.

"You should tell your mom. She could probably help."

Rory shook her head. "No. She's going through a lot right now. I don't want to tell her."

"I thought you told your mom everything."

"Yeah usually, but I'm not ready to tell her about Dean."

"Okay. But I still think you should." Lane envied Rory and Lorelai's relationship. It was like the ideal mother-daughter relationship.

* * *

"I'm going to bring board games." Sookie told Lorelai as she continued to stir her sauce. "And Cookies. Oh cookies. Kids love cookies. Especially my cookies." Sookie rattled on. "Oh and Davey. I'm bringing Davey. I figured he and Ruby can play. They love each other."

"Yes they are going to get married one day." Lorelai smiled.

"Jackson is really happy that we are going to be gone. He never has the house to himself. He'll probably walk around naked."

"That's what all good men do when they are home alone." She laughed. "I want to go ahead and apologize ahead of time for Ryan's bad attitude and poor behavior. He isn't going to be very cooperative because he thinks that I'm being unfair." Lorelai sat down her coffee cup. "He compared me to my mother. Can you believe his nerve?"

"Speaking of your mother." Mia said, hearing the end of Lorelai's rant. "She is here."

Lorelai frowned. "What? She's early. Way too early." She sighed. "Did you tell her I was way too busy? You can tell her we need to reschedule. Maybe ten years from now." Lorelai put her thumbs up and made a face, knowing Mia was not going to go for it.

"Oh Lorelai." She walked over to the girl. "It won't be that bad."

"You people keep saying that." She points between Mia and Sookie. "But you are actually throwing me into the lion's den. Seriously. It is going to be one big bloody massacre out there. Her blood will be on your hands." Lorelai held up her hands dramatically.

"You are being dramatic." Sookie said plainly.

"Extremely." Mia grabbed Lorelai's hand. "Now go. She is waiting for you." She led her to the door.

Lorelai made a face as Mia pushed her out of the door. She saw her mother sitting properly on the couch. She took a deep breath. "Mom."

"Lorelai. I know I'm early."

"No. Mom. Not really." Lorelai didn't know what else to do or how else to greet her. It all felt so awkward. "Um so."

"Coffee?" Emily asked.

"Right. Yes."

"Should we go somewhere else?" Emily was also unsure of how to greet her daughter.

"We can have coffee here." Lorelai suggested.

"We don't have to have coffee." Emily thought. "This isn't about the coffee."

"I didn't think it was, but I might need a cup or three." Lorelai smiled but Emily didn't. "I will go fix us both a cup of coffee, and we can sit right over there." Lorelai pointed to the table and chairs by the window.

"Shouldn't we go into the dining room?"

"No. We don't have too." Lorelai told her. "Unless you want to."

"No. That table is fine. You go get the coffee."

"Cream and sugar."

"I'll take it black." Emily said as she turned towards the table and chairs Lorelai had pointed to.

Lorelai walked back to the kitchen, where Mia already had her two cups of coffee ready. "Here you go." She handed them to Lorelai.

"I could have fixed the coffee."

"Nope. You would just try to find another way out of this."

"Mia."

"Go." Mia pointed playfully.

Lorelai sighed but did as she was told. She made her way to her mother. "Here you go. Sookie makes pretty good coffee."

"Thank you."

Lorelai sat across from her mother. She took a sip of her coffee. "You should take a sip of your coffee mom. It really is good. I think you would like it."

"I will." Emily looked at her coffee but did not take a drink.

Lorelai became fidgety. Her mom had a way of making her feel that way. "So mom."

"How's Ryan feeling?" Emily asked. She thought it might cut the tension.

"Oh physically he feels fine."

"What does that mean?" Emily became concerned.

"He is mad at me. I'm the worst mother in the world." Lorelai was surprised she was telling her mother about it. She tried to keep those details to herself when it came to her mother.

"I remember feeling like that when you were growing up." Emily noted. If she were being honest, she had always felt like that.

"Yeah well." Lorelai didn't know what to say.

"Why is he so mad at you?"

Lorelai thought about it. "I won't let him go to his girlfriend's house tonight or anywhere without me. He's not too happy about it."

"You have every right to punish him, Lorelai. You are his mother, and he made several poor decisions that could have ended a lot worse than they did."

"I know. I don't think he feels that way though."

"I know that you always do the exact opposite of what I say, but it is my opinion that kids need boundaries and rules and when they break those rules there needs to be consequences." Emily knew Lorelai probably didn't care what she had to say. "You want to be friends with your kids. That is fine, but sometimes you are going to have to be their mother. It isn't always a fun job, no matter how hard you try, but it is your job."

"I know that."

"And from what I can tell you are doing a really good job."

Lorelai looked at her mother with a smirk. "Really? You think that? Even after what happened with Ryan."

Emily nodded. "Kids make mistakes. They look happier than I've ever seen them look." Emily thought it was time to be honest with her. "The fact that the whole town showed up for you last week, well that says a lot about this town."

"It is a great town. Something you only find in movies or magical books." Lorelai smiled.

Emily took a breath and looked at her daughter. She couldn't remember a time where she had seen Lorelai so happy. "Lorelai," She spoke calmly. "I know I have made a lot of mistakes where you are concerned."

"Mom." Lorelai said slowly.

Emily held up her hand. "Please let me say what I need to say, then you can feel free to quip however you please."

Lorelai made a face. She wasn't sure where this conversation was going to go and it made her nervous. "Fine. Mom. Go ahead."

"I know that you hated the way that I raised you."

Lorelai made another face.

"I know you wished that we could have been friends, but that is not how I was raised. I wasn't taught to be a friend to my daughter. A mother was many things but not a friend. I was supposed to teach you right from wrong, set boundaries and make sure that you were well taken care of. I was also responsible for making sure that you upheld the Gilmore name."

Lorelai couldn't control her facial expressions, which didn't go unnoticed by Emily.

"When I married your father, I knew I was also marrying his name. The Gilmore name means something. There are certain standards a Gilmore must meet."

"Sorry I never met those standards." Lorelai said with sarcasm in her voice.

"Lorelai." Emily warned.

"Sorry."

"I wish someone had taught me how to bond with my daughter, to be more of your friend. Maybe we would have had a different relationship. Maybe you wouldn't have ended up pregnant at sixteen."

"Mom." Lorelai really didn't want to go down that rabbit whole again. They had discussed it way too many times to count.

"You were always rebelling against my rules and my standards. If I liked it then you automatically hated it."

"That's not true." It was probably true.

"Oh it is true." Emily corrected. "And you know it is." She pointed at Lorelai. "Instead of fighting you on that fact so much, I should have embraced it. I should have figured out a way to connect with you, but I didn't." Emily sighed and looked at her daughter. "I can't change the choices that I made, specifically forcing you to marry Christopher."

"So you admit you forced me?" Lorelai interrupted. Her mother had never admitted it before.

"When you get pregnant, you get married. That is the way it should be." Emily said for the thousandth time in her life.

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Not when you are sixteen. Not when you aren't in love." She argued. "I didn't love Christopher the way you are supposed to love the person you are married to. Love doesn't happen just because you married. Yes, there are times where I wish that I would have waited until I was in love because I want that, mom. I do. I want the whole package." She couldn't believe she was telling this to her mother. "But Christopher was not my whole package." She said sadly. She wished that Christopher had been her whole package. Life would have been easier that way.

"I know." Emily wanted that for her daughter as well. "It seemed right at the time."

"It didn't matter that we got married. We still brought shame on the family." Lorelai told her. "Maybe even more shame than when we were sixteen."

"I'm sorry." Emily told her honestly.

"What?" Lorelai was shocked. Sorry was not something Emily Gilmore ever said.

"I wanted you to get married because I thought it was the right thing to do. I thought the children needed both parents, especially Ryan. I thought things would work out the way we had planned." Emily took a moment. "I was also scared of losing you."

"Mom." Lorelai bit her bottom lip. She wasn't expecting her mother to say any of the things she had said. It was weird.

"I would have lost you." Emily knew that to be true. She had thought about it many times over the years, even before Lorelai had gotten pregnant. "The minute you had the chance you would have taken those kids and run far, far away from me, our family, and the lifestyle you have always hated so much." Emily looked at her, a small tear beginning to form. "And I was right because you did." She pointed at Lorelai and then at the Inn. "It may have taken you years, but you ran and never looked back. You haven't even been here a year, and you have already made a life for yourself and the children." Emily was jealous. Lorelai could tell. "This town loves you, and you love these people more than you have ever loved me." Emily also knew that was true.

"Mom."

"That's okay. I understand." Emily nodded her head. "But I'll tell you what Lorelai, I don't want to be shut out from your life or the children's lives. I have grown too fond of having you all in my life. I don't want to wake up one day and have missed every important moment in their lives. I don't want to miss birthdays, holidays, or graduation. I want to be front row and center at all of those events like every good grandmother should be."

"Mom, I," Lorelai started. She needed her mother to know a few things.

"Wait. You don't want to miss this part." Emily smiled. "I was recently reminded that you are Ryan's, Rory's, and Ruby's mother, not me."

"Oh I wasn't sure. I didn't think carrying them for nine months meant I was there mother." Lorelai joked.

Emily didn't think it was a very funny joke. "As hard as it is for me I have to let you raise them the way you see fit, even if I don't agree with it."

"Mom, we both know you aren't going to be able to do that. You always try to control us. That was one reason I needed to move. We all needed a fresh start."

"I know." Emily really was trying. "I understand that. I'm not trying to get you to move back to Hartford, but I want to be a part of your life."

Lorelai didn't know what to say. It might have been a first.

"I can't promise that I'm going to agree with everything that you do because we both know I won't. I can't promise that I won't voice my opinion about things. We both know I will tell you exactly how I feel. But I won't expect you to take my advice. I hope that you will at least hear me out when I do voice my concerns."

"I can't promise that I'll ever listen."

"I know."

"We do things my way." Lorelai told her.

"I know."

"Birthdays, holidays, school, anything regarding the kids is done the way that I want it to be done. The way the kids need it to be done."

Emily nodded.

"No secret birthday parties." Lorelai warned.

Emily nodded.

"If you want to buy them something, then you will pass it by me. If I say no then that means no."

"Okay." Emily knew it would be hard, but she wanted to be there for them.

"You have no say over my love life."

"Like you will even tell me about your love life." Emily knew that she wouldn't. She never did when she was a teenager.

"If things get serious then I will tell you about it." Lorelai told her.

"Luke?" Emily questioned. "You are dating Luke."

"Mom. We are not talking about it."

"He saved your son's life. That makes sense to me." Emily smiled. "He wouldn't be my…"

"Don't. Finish that sentence." Lorelai stopped her mother. "We can try this, but I'm not making any promises."

"One day at a time." Emily stood up. "That's all I'm asking for." She didn't want to miss out on any of it. She couldn't imagine not being a part of their lives.

Lorelai stood up. "Okay." Lorelai didn't know if she was supposed to shake her mother's hand or give her a hug. They weren't really ones to hug each other.

"Okay then." Emily sighed. "Should we talk about Christopher?"

"No." Lorelai said quickly.

"All of those things that Ryan said."

"Were true." Lorelai finished. "But it is in the past and we are starting anew."

Emily nodded. "If you ever want to talk about it."

"I don't want to talk about it, mom. I just want to move forward with my life and for the kids."

"Okay. I am very sorry. I will always feel responsible." Emily told her.

"Christopher is a grown man. He made his own decisions and mistakes. As much as I want to blame you, I can't." Lorelai told her mother honestly.

Emily nodded and then looked at her watch. "I have taken up enough of your time. Hopefully I will see you soon."

"Yes." Lorelai nodded. "I'll call and set something up. Ruby misses her grandma and me days."

"Oh I miss them terribly."

"We will work it out." Lorelai meant it. She knew it was a good thing for the kids, and they were always her number one priority.

"Sounds wonderful." Emily looked at her daughter, still unsure if she should give her a hug. She nodded. "See you, Lorelai."

"See you, mom."

Emily gave her one more look before walking out of the Inn.

Lorelai stood there for a moment.

Mia joined her. "How did it go?"

Lorelai took a breath. "We will see." She wanted to believe her mother could change, but honestly she would believe it when she actually saw it happen.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought! That Emily and Lorelai stuff was hard to write. I hope I got it right, and you all enjoyed it!**


	44. You are a Lady

**Thank you all so much for the support. I love reading your comments. I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **Just curious how many of my readers are Team Dean, Team Jess, or Team Logan?**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 44: You are a Lady**

Lorelai was almost ready for her date with Luke. She couldn't believe how nervous she was. She felt like the nerves were because the date was actually going to happen. They were finally going to have their first official date. She hadn't dated since she was a teenager. She hoped that she didn't make a fool of herself or ruin things with Luke. Lorelai couldn't believe how much she cared about Luke. It felt different, in a very good way.

"Mom." Rory said as she plopped down on her mother's bed.

"Yes." Lorelai turned around as she put her last earring on.

"You and grandma talked today." Rory was happy that they finally had a conversation. She wanted them to make amends and find a happy medium.

"Yes we talked."

"And it went well?" Rory pressed for more information.

"We already talked about this." Lorelai reminded her as she found a pair of boots to wear with her outfit. She had given Rory the very brief cliff notes version of the conversation. "I'm going to let your grandmother back in, but not like before. I'm in charge of you and your brother and sister. She can be a part of our lives, but she has to follow my rules."

"I think that is what she wants." Rory smiles.

"How do you know?" Lorelai wondered.

Rory shrugged. "I just have that feeling." She didn't want to tell her mom about her conversation with her grandmother. She didn't think it was important to mention.

"Your feelings are usually right, just like mine." Lorelai gave her daughter a hug. "Everything is going to be okay." She tried to reassure. She hated when her kids worried about her or her parents. They weren't supposed to worry about anything but being teenagers.

"I know." Rory looked at her mom and smiled. "You look great. Luke is one lucky guy." She was really happy for her mother.

"You think so?" Lorelai asked giddily.

Rory nodded with a smile. "Yeah you look breathtaking."

"Aw Rory." Lorelai turned around and flipped her hair. "And you are sure that you are okay with me dating Luke? I know you were apprehensive at first. I don't want to do anything that makes you kids uncomfortable. You three always come first." She hoped they always remembered that fact. "Always." She reiterated.

"Luke is great." Rory told her mother. "I want you to be happy. You deserve someone as amazing as you are, and Luke is pretty close."

"I think so too." Lorelai couldn't believe how happy she felt. "Let me see you." She motioned for Rory to stand up. "Nice outfit. Very casual."

Rory was wearing a sweater and jeans, very similar to what Lorelai was wearing.

"It is a very low key event." She told her mom.

"Her parents will be there right?" Lorelai asked again. They had already been over this once.

Rory nodded.

"You are going with Lane?"

Rory nodded again. "Yes. I'm walking to Lane's. Then we are walking to Grace's."

"Home by 9:30." Lorelai reminded her.

"Yes. I know. I think Lane has to be home by 9."

"Perfect. Kiss the mommy." Lorelai gave her daughter a quick kiss. "Is Sookie downstairs?"

Rory nodded. "Ruby and Davey are already making a mess."

"Great. I would expect nothing less." Lorelai made a face.

Rory pointed down the hall. "Your other teenager is sulking in his room."

Lorelai chuckled. "Again. I would expect nothing less." She looked at her watch. "You should get going. Call me if you need anything. I will have my cell."

"I will." She gave her another hug. "Have fun but not too much fun. After all you are a lady."

"Thank you mom." Lorelai laughed. "I've got this."

"Love you." Rory said as she walked downstairs.

Lorelai made the finishing touches on her outfit and then frowned as she walked towards Ryan's door. She took a breath and poked her head into his cracked door. He was sulking just as Rory had said. "Luke will be here soon."

He didn't even look up at her.

"Sookie is downstairs. It would be nice if you would go downstairs and interact with her. I think she is going to bake cookies."

"Mom. Seriously."

"Seriously." Lorelai held out her hands dramatically.

"You can make me stay home, but you can't make me go downstairs." Ryan said with attitude.

Lorelai grunted. She decided it was in her best interest not to get into an argument with him. "Fine by me. Stay in your room, pout, and have a miserable time." She patted the door. "I love you."

Ryan didn't say it back, but she hadn't expected him too.

She made her way downstairs. Ruby and Davey were sitting on the floor playing with her tea set.

"Hi Aunt Worewai." Davey greeted her.

"Hey little man." Lorelai greeted the cute little Jackson look alike.

Sookie rounded the corner. She had already gotten flour all over herself. "Oh my goodness. You look beautiful." Sookie cheered.

"Thanks, Sook."

"Yeah mommy." Ruby stood up. "You look like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman."

Sookie gave Lorelai a look. Of course she let her six year old daughter watch a movie about a hooker.

Lorelai shrugged guiltily.

"Don't worry Sookie. I closed my eyes during the adult moments." Ruby smiled. "That's what I do on all my mommy's favorite movies."

"That's good to know." Sookie remarked.

"Don't take away my mommy points." Lorelai joked.

The doorbell rang. Lorelai froze.

"What's wrong?" Sookie asked. "Did you forget deodorant?"

"The last time this was about to happen, it wasn't Luke at the door."

"I'm pretty sure it is Luke this time." She pushed Lorelai towards the door. "Go. Go." She squealed. "You two are my new favorite couple."

Ruby ran in front of the two of them to answer the door. "Hello Luke. Please come in." She was very formal with him.

Luke smiled. "Hey Ruby." He walked in. He looked very nice. He was more dressed up than Lorelai was used too, but he looked normal.

"Hi." She smiled at him like they were teenagers.

"Hey there." He thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world. He was holding flowers in his hands.

"Are those for me?" Ruby asked as she pointed to the flowers.

"Oh uh. These are for you and your mom." Luke decided that was the best answer. Lorelai liked that answer.

"They are perfect." Lorelai remarked.

"Next time you should bring chocolates. We both love chocolates." Her arms were crossed.

"That's good to know." Luke said nervously. "I'll be better prepared next time."

"That's all I ask."

"Ruby." Lorelai gave her a look.

"I'll put those in some water for you." Sookie grabbed the flowers.

"Thanks, Sookie."

"Luke, you better be nice to my mommy or we will have to have a talk." She still had her arms crossed.

"Ruby." Lorelai scolded again.

"I'm just laying down the rules. Someone has to do it."

Luke bent down to make eye contact with the little girl. "Ruby, you have nothing to worry about."

"I hope not."

"Are you ready?" Lorelai asked Luke. She was ready to get this show on the road.

Luke nodded.

Lorelai gave Ruby a quick kiss. "You be good for Sookie. Keep an eye on your brother."

"You got it."

"So Ruby, what time should I have her home." Luke decided to play along.

"Ten O' Clock on the dot." Ruby told him quickly. Luke was making her feel important, and she liked that. So did Lorelai.

"Oh come on Rube. It's a Friday night." Lorelai faked a whiny voice.

"Ten thirty and no later." She warned Luke.

"Thanks Ruby."

"Have fun."

They both nodded and walked out of the house. "Your six year old just gave you a curfew."

"You better get used to it buddy." She playfully hit his shoulder. "So where are we going?"

"You'll see." He smiled. He was excited to take her to his special place.

* * *

"I seriously cannot believe my mom let me come." Lane said as she and Rory made their way to Grace's party. "She never lets me do anything that isn't church related."

"How did you convince her?" Rory was curious.

Lane shrugged. "I really don't know. I had this whole speech planned when she said no like normal, but then when I asked her, she said yes like it was no big deal."

"She didn't ask any questions?"

"She asked if her parents would be there, if you were coming, and then she told me I had to be home by 9."

"Wow. She's growing up. I'm impressed."

"I know." Lane smiled. "This is great. It may never happen again."

"So we better enjoy it while it last."

"Hey." Dean ran up next to the girls.

"Dean." Rory was happy to see him.

"I thought I saw the two of you."

"Glad you caught up with us." Rory smiled at him.

"We are here." Lane pointed to Grace's house. It wasn't very far away from Lane's house.

"Hey." Grace ran outside. "I am so glad that you are here." She looked at Dean.

"I'm Dean. Rory's and Lane's friend."

"Oh you are the new kid. I think we have English together. I'm Grace." She extended her hand.

Dean shook it. "Hey Grace. Nice to meet you. I hope it is okay that I crashed your party."

"Oh of course. Any friend of theirs is a friend of mine." She looked at Lane and Rory. "I need your help." She pointed to the couch where Jess was sitting. "He is sulking. I don't know what is wrong with him. He has been like this all week."

"Come on. You can meet Jess." Rory told Dean. "He is my brother's best friend." She walked over to the couch. "Hey Jess."

"Hey." He barely looked up at them.

"This is Dean." Lane introduced them.

"Hey man." Dean spoke first.

"Hey." He stood up. "I'm going to get some more punch."

"Are you okay?" Rory asked.

"Dandy." Jess walked past her.

"Jess." Rory caught up with him.

"Rory, I'm fine." He walked away.

Rory followed him again. "What is up with you?"

"I'm thirsty." Jess told her.

"You are acting like a jerk."

"Because I'm thirsty and didn't feel like chit chatting with your boyfriend." Jess rolled his eyes.

"Dean is not my boyfriend." She said quickly. "He is new at school, and we were trying to be nice to him."

"Okay."

"Jess, come on. You know you can talk to me." Rory encouraged.

"Rory." He turned towards her. "I'm not in the mood to talk to anyone right now." He walked out of the room.

"Did you get anything out of him?" Lane asked.

"Nope." Rory sounded defeated.

"I'll let him cool off and then I'll go talk to him. Maybe it has to do with your brother." Grace suggested.

"Yeah. I guess they are both in the same boat. My brother is at home sulking as we speak." Rory told them. She hoped Jess would get out of his funk. She didn't like seeing him like that.

* * *

Ryan waited until he heard Sookie in the kitchen before he attempted his great escape. He was almost to the door, when he heard a little voice say, "Busted."

He grimaced and turned around to see his little sister staring at him with her arms crossed. "You aren't supposed to leave the house. Mommy said."

"I'm just going outside to get some fresh air." He obviously lied.

Ruby shook her head. "Yeah right. What do I look like, a three year old? You are going to see your girlfriend."

"Just for a minute." Ryan admitted. "I would really appreciate it if you wouldn't say anything to Sookie, okay."

"What's in it for me?" Ruby asked as if she were much older than six. Ryan had no idea where she got that attitude.

"What are you? A little con artist."

"I learned from the best." She pointed at Ryan.

Ryan shook his head. He could hear Sookie say something in the kitchen.

"You have to play tea party with me anytime I want for the next month."

"Ruby." Ryan sighed.

"Sookie." She called out for the woman with a smile on her face.

"Fine. Fine." Ryan gave in. "You've got yourself a deal."

Ruby gave him a thumbs up, and Ryan ran out of the house.

"Yeah Ruby." Sookie walked into the foyer.

"I'm ready for a cookie."

"Alright sweet cheeks." Sookie took the little girl into the kitchen.

* * *

Luke pulled his truck into an old tavern. Lorelai was a little surprised, but couldn't wait to see what he had planned. He walked around and opened her door. "Right this way."

Lorelai followed him inside, and he led her to a table with a reserved sign. "Wow. Fancy." Lorelai remarked.

"That's how I roll." He smiled. "Only the best for my dates."

"Dates?" She questioned. "This is where you bring all the girls."

"Only the really special ones." He teased.

"I'm just glad to be one of the special ones."

"Lorelai, you are more than…" Before he could finish his sentence, he heard his name.

"Lucas." An older woman walked over to the table.

"Maisy." Luke stood up and gave her a hug. "It is so good to see you. Thanks for reserving the table."

"Only the best for my favorite customer." She turned her attention to Lorelai. "Well hello there. You sure are way more beautiful than I imagined."

"Awe thank you. I'm Lorelai." She turned to Luke. "You've been talking about me."

"Oh. No. Not." Luke stumbled over his words.

Maisy hit his shouder. "Oh Lucas don't you lie to her. He has been happy about this date since you kissed him at Christmas."

"Oh really." She smiled.

"Lucas has never brought a girl here before. You should feel very special."

"We were just discussing that. This is a great place you have here." Lorelai pointed.

"Oh thank you. I have always loved the rustic feel. Buddy. Get out here. Lucas is here, and he brought a lady."

Buddy ran out of the back. "A lady? Our Lucas?" He came to the table.

"Hey Buddy." Luke greeted him. "This is Lorelai."

Buddy looked at her. "Hi Lorelai. You are as pretty as a picture."

Lorelai looked at Luke. "You should bring me here every day. It has been very good for my ego."

"I'll remember that." He was glad that things seemed to be going well.

"I'm going to get you some champagne."

"And a beer." Luke added.

Maisy shook her head. "You are on a date young man. You need to at least let her think that you have some class."

"Yes ma'am." Luke agreed.

"I'll go get started on your meal."

Lorelai looked at the menu.

"It wouldn't matter what you ordered. They are going to bring you whatever they please." Luke explained to her.

"Lorelai, it was really nice to meet you." She touched Luke's shoulder. "We really love this guy right here." She smiled one last time before walking away.

Lorelai looked at Luke. "Wow." She smiled and hit his shoulder. "Those people really know you."

Luke nodded. "Yep. They have known me since I was born. Maisy was my mom's best friend."

"That's great that you have stayed in touch with them."

"After my parents past away, Maisy and Buddy took it upon themselves to take care of me. Buddy really helped me when I opened the diner." Luke smiled when he thought about it. He was really lucky to have them in his life. "I try to come here as often as I can."

"It is a great place. Thank you for bringing me here."

Luke reached across the table and held her hand. "I'm just glad that we are finally getting to do this."

"Me too." She squeezed his hand. It was going really well.

* * *

Sookie and the kids were eating the cookies that Sookie had baked. "I'm going to go get your brother." Sookie told the kids.

Ruby stood up. "No. He doesn't like cookies."

"Your mom would want him to be social and these cookies are delicious, if I do say so myself." She held up a cookie.

"He's allergic."

"Ruby. No he isn't." Sookie laughed it off.

"Yes he is."

"Ruby." Sookie became suspicious. "Is your brother in his room?" She had a feeling he wasn't.

Ruby nodded. "Yes. Where else could he be?"

"Well then I'm going to get him."

"No." Ruby ran in front of her.

"Ruby." Sookie said in a warning tone. She walked to the stairs. "Ryan. Ryan."

"Sookie. Wait." Ruby tried to stop her.

Sookie walked upstairs with Ruby following behind her. She opened Ryan's door to see that he was missing. "Oh no. Lorelai is going to kill me." She shook her head.

* * *

Maisy had brought their food out. Luke thought it was way too much, but Lorelai was chowing down.

"Buddy is the best in the business. He taught me everything that I know."

"I may have to start coming here instead of Luke's." She joked with him. "I think the kids would love this place."

"Maybe we can bring them here together. Jess too. He does like this place."

Lorelai nodded. "I'd like that."

Her phone rings. "I'm sorry." She looked at the caller ID. "It's Sookie. She wouldn't be calling if it wasn't important."

"Go ahead." Luke told her.

"Hey Sookie. Is everything okay?" She asked.

Luke watched her face as Sookie talked on the other end of the line.

"It's okay Sookie. I'll handle it." Lorelai said as she hung up the phone.

"Lorelai."

She looked up at him. He could tell she was about to cry. "Lorelai. What's wrong? Is everything okay? Lorelai. Talk to me."

"Ryan snuck out." A tear dripped from her eye.

"Okay. He's a teenage boy. Why are you crying? Did something else happen?"

"I think I always have to cry on our dates." She remembered the last time. Although she had been pretty drunk the first time.

"What's going on?" Luke wished she would answer.

"He doesn't get it." She looked at him and sighed. "I could have lost him. If you hadn't found him when you did, we could be having a completely different conversation right now." She wiped away one of her tears. "He doesn't get it. That's my biggest fear. I don't know how to make him understand what happened. I don't ever want to be without one of my children. That's not the way it is supposed to be. Ever."

"Come on, Lorelai. I'll get Maisy to box this stuff up. We will go find him."

Lorelai nodded. "Thanks, Luke."

"You are doing a good job." Luke reminded her. "You are not going to lose him."

"How do you know that?"

"I just do. Trust me, okay."

"Okay."

* * *

Jess was sitting outside on Grace's porch. He was not having a good time. He knew that he had been in a bad mood all week. He couldn't explain it. At least not aloud.

"Jess." Grace walked outside and sat beside him.

"What are you doing out here?"

"That's funny. I was going to ask you the same thing." Grace smiled but Jess didn't. "My dad decided to dance. It is totally embarrassing. I'd much rather be out here with the grumpiest guy on the planet." She poked him.

"I'm not grumpy." He said grumpily.

"You are totally grumpy. What's going on with you?"

Jess looked at her. He didn't know how to say it.

"Are you mad at Ryan? Are you mad at me? Did your uncle do something to piss you off?"

"I don't know."

"Jess." She touched his shoulder. "You have to know why you are so upset or else you wouldn't be upset."

"I don't know." He said again.

"You can talk to me. We are friends." She rubbed his shoulder.

Before Jess realized what he was doing, he leaned in and kissed Grace, taking her by surprised. "Jess." She whispered.

"I shouldn't have done that."

"No you shouldn't have, you jerk."

They turned around to see Ryan standing on the porch. "What the hell, man?"

"Ryan. It's not what you think." Jess said.

"It's exactly what I think. You kissed her."

"Ryan. Calm down." Grace told him. "I like you. That's all that matters."

"Jackass."

"I'm not the jackass." Jess walked towards Ryan. "You just don't get it."

"I get that you kissed my girlfriend." Ryan pushed him.

"Don't push me."

"I'll push you if I want too." Ryan pushed him again.

Jess's tempered flared, and he jumped Ryan.

"Jess. Ryan." Grace yelled.

"Boys." Luke ran up the stairs. Followed by Lorelai. They arrived just in time. "Break it up." He pulled Jess off of Ryan. "What the hell is going on here?" He asked Jess.

Both boys remained quiet. Ryan caught his mother's eye. She didn't look amused. Uh oh.

"Let's go." Luke told both boys.

* * *

 **Alright let me know what you though. I promise Luke and Lorelai will have a date that doesn't get interrupted eventually. I hope you liked this chapter. And in the show I absolutely loved their first date. I wish that Maisy and Buddy could have been a bigger part of the show. They were great and gave Luke some more depth.**

 **Anyways, thanks for reading!**


	45. Bad Precedent

**Thanks for answering my Team Dean, Jess, or Logan question. I was just curious.**

 **Thanks again for all the reviews, follows, and faves. You all are the best.**

 **I hope you guys enjoy the chapter.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 45: Bad Precedent**

Lorelai and Ryan were walking through the town. Lorelai thought it was best for them to walk. It would give her some time to cool down and think. She was mad at him for so many reasons, but she knew Ryan took after her. He was a master at arguing. So she remained silent to avoid an argument.

Ryan knew what she was doing. He knew that she was trying to wait him out. It drove him crazy. He knew that she knew that. "Mom." He decided he was going to take the bait and break the silence. "I know you are mad."

It was the wrong thing to say. She stopped walking. "Really. Because I thought you knew I meant business when I said you were supposed to stay home tonight." She pointed at him and the outside. "Obviously I was wrong because this doesn't look like our house to me."

Ryan didn't say anything.

"I know you did it because you didn't think that you would be caught." Lorelai continued. "Poor Sookie. She was freaking out when you weren't in your room."

"I didn't mean to freak Sookie out. I thought you were being unfair. You are suffocating me." He yelled.

"Give me a pillow." Lorelai quipped. "I am not suffocating you." Lorelai rolled her eyes. "That's ridiculous."

"Yes you are. Just like Gran…"

"Don't." Lorelai interrupted him. "Don't you dare say it." She didn't want to hear it.

"It's the truth. You don't trust me just like she never trusted you."

By this point, Lorelai was furious. "You are right. I don't trust you, but I have every reason not to. Case in point. Look where we are standing right now."

"You could have left me at home without Sookie. I could have watched Ruby."

Lorelai sighed. He was probably right about that, but she had been nervous about it. She wanted to protect him. She was still so scared of losing him. "I am not my mother, and I know you don't really think that. You are trying to hurt my feelings because you are mad."

"I have the right to be mad." Ryan knew he was pushing it.

"I treat you kids with respect. I listen to you. We make decisions as a family. I have never tried to push you into that social circle. I have always let you choose your friends and activities at school. I try my best to be your friend. To understand you. My mother never did that when I was your age." Lorelai tried to explain.

"Friends don't punish each other." Ryan quipped.

"You are right. They don't. But when you screw up, I'm not your friend. I'm your mom."

"I don't think you can be both." Ryan tried to explain to her. It was a little confusing for him.

Lorelai sighed. He had a valid point. "Ryan, I wanted to keep you close because you have to understand what you did was wrong. I was worried sick about you. You had been drinking, you ran off, and got behind the wheel of the car. You don't even have a license. That's irresponsible. Not to mention illegal."

"I get it." Truthfully, he did understand, but he still didn't like it. "I know it was wrong."

"The fact that I just picked you up from a party where you weren't supposed to be, where you were fighting with your best friend, shows me otherwise." Lorelai explained. "Seeing you in that hospital bed was my worst nightmare. I can't go through that again. I don't know what I would do if I lost you." She had to hold back the tears. Anytime she thought it about it, she became emotional.

"You aren't going to lose me." Ryan felt bad. He could tell that she was hurt.

"You don't know that unless you have a magic ball I'm not aware of." Lorelai made a slight joke, but didn't laugh. Ryan didn't laugh either. "You have to think about your actions. They have consequences. You can't do whatever the hell you want to whenever the hell you want to do it."

"I'm sorry." Ryan really meant it.

Lorelai started walking again. Ryan decided it was best to follow her. They reached the house, but Lorelai stopped him from going inside. "We are a lot like, you and I." She began. "I pushed the envelope as far as it could go as often as I possibly could. I rebelled against my parents and their rules."

"Drank?" Ryan interrupted.

Lorelai nodded. "Yes I did, but I never got behind the wheel of a car. Never." She did a lot of stupid things, but that, fortunately, was not one of them.

"I'm sorry." He said again. "I screwed up, but you can't keep me locked up forever."

"You are right. I can't. At some point I hope that I will be able to trust you again."

Ryan nodded. He was glad that she saw things his way.

"Forever would be too long." She continued. "Two weeks seems sufficient."

"What?"

"Other than school, you are not leaving this house for the next two weeks." Lorelai hated to do it, but she needed to do it for peace of mind. She didn't have a magic ball, but she could see Ryan making all of the same mistakes she had made and it scared the hell out of her.

"Mom, that's crazy. You can't ground me. I told you that I was sorry."

"I know that, but that doesn't change the fact that you snuck out of the house tonight. I don't want to punish you. I don't get excited about grounding you. I don't do a dance or sing a song when I have to. Actually I hate it because it does bring back awful memories of my childhood, but in this case I think it is necessary. You continue to break the rules. I don't know what else to do." She really was at a loss.

"You would never do this to Rory." Ryan argued as he walked past her into the house.

"Ryan." Lorelai called out for him, but he was already gone. She sighed as she walked into the house. She heard his door slam.

"Lorelai." Sookie ran up to her. "I just saw Ryan. I'm so sorry."

"Oh Sook." Lorelai gave her a hug. "This isn't your fault."

"Your date with Luke was ruined again."

"I shouldn't have gone." Lorelai thought.

"You don't like him?" Sookie worried. She had already pictured Lorelai and Luke walking down the aisle and having babies together. A lot of babies.

"No. I mean yes. I like him. I like Luke a lot, but I should have stayed home with Ryan. I knew he was going to sneak out." She walked into the kitchen, and Sookie followed her.

"I need a beer." She grabbed one out of the fridge. "Here." She handed one to Sookie.

"Thanks. I really am sorry." She felt guilty.

"Again. This is not your fault." She grabbed a cookie. "These are delicious. Where are the kids?"

"They are asleep in Ruby's room."

"You should leave him here. You and Jackson can have some alone time. I'll bring him home in the morning." Lorelai suggested.

"Thanks." Sookie thought it was a good idea. "Davey will like that. He loves your daughter."

"I can't wait to be in-laws." Lorelai smiled.

"Oh. We will be the best in-laws." Sookie said excitedly.

"We could probably get our own sitcom."

"Oh yes. Call a producer now." Sookie paused. "I should probably tell you that Ruby tried to cover for Ryan by saying he was allergic to cookies. She practically threw herself in front of me to keep me downstairs." Sookie thought it was a little funny. "You better watch out for that one. She is going to be the master manipulator."

"Oh great. Another one." Lorelai said sarcastically. "I'll talk to her about it."

"Before I go, tell me about your date."

"It was great." Lorelai remembered. It really had been the start of something nice. "He introduced me to people who are a lot like his parents. I took it as a major compliment. I think he likes me."

"Lorelai. This is great news." She was extremely excited. "He does like you."

"Thanks for making it happen. I don't know if I'd ever given him a chance if it wasn't for you."

"You would have. You just needed a little push, and you also need to have a date that leads to the bow chica wow wow."

"Sookie." Lorelai shot her a look.

"Oh come on Lorelai. You know you have thought about it."

"Of course I have thought about it. But I want to take things slow. It isn't about the sex for me." It was the truth. She couldn't wait to get to that step with Luke, but she had a feeling it would be worth the wait.

* * *

Luke and Jess walked into their apartment. Both had been very quiet. Jess hoped his uncle would just go to bed and not press him to talk about it. He took his chances by walking to his bedroom.

"Jess." Luke said softly.

Jess stopped in his tracks and sighed.

"Could you come in here please?" Luke walked to the kitchen table.

Jess sighed again. He knew he didn't have any other option. He turned around and sat next to his uncle at the table.

"You want to tell me what is going on with you?" Luke asked in a calm tone. He wasn't exactly mad at Jess, but he was confused. Jess had been acting strange all week. Luke realized he should have pressed him on it sooner.

Jess didn't say anything. He really didn't want to talk about it. He didn't think anyone would really understand.

"Jess." Luke nudged him. "Come on. I need to know what is going on. Why were you fighting with Ryan?"

Jess shrugged.

"Jess." Luke nudged him again. "I'm going to be more concerned if you were just fighting with your best friend for absolutely no reason."

"I kissed Grace." Jess admitted. He felt so stupid for doing it. It hadn't meant anything, but he had a feeling that didn't matter to Ryan or to Grace.

"You kissed Grace?" Luke was surprised. "I thought she was dating Ryan."

"She is." Jess said guiltily.

"Oh." Luke knew that wasn't good. "Let me guess. Ryan caught you?"

Jess nodded.

"Why did you kiss your buddy's girlfriend?" Luke asked.

Jess shook his head. "It was stupid."

"You and Ryan seem to be on the outs lately. Is that because of Grace?" Luke asked curiously.

"No." Jess told him honestly. He had been mad at Ryan all week.

"Come on kid, you have got to tell me what is going on with you."

Jess sighed. "I feel stupid."

"What? Why?"

"I'm mad at Ryan because he is acting a lot like my mom."

Luke was surprised to hear this but continued to listen to his nephew.

"He doesn't get that what he did effected more people than just himself. It is like he has no remorse." Jess admitted. It felt weird actually saying it out loud. "It is exactly how my mom has always acted."

"I know." Luke hated that his nephew had experienced so many bad things in his life. They rarely talked about it all, and Luke was sure there were many things that Jess would never tell him. "Ryan is not your mom. He is a teenager and as you know teenagers think differently."

"He and my mom think a whole lot alike, and it really pisses me off." Jess sighed.

"You're mom has always been a kid at heart." It was true. Luke didn't think Liz would ever grow up. "Ryan is going to make mistakes just like you are. You need to talk to him about it."

"I'm a guy, and I'm your nephew." Jess smiled. "It is a double whammy when it comes to me opening up."

"Well take it from someone who knows, if you don't talk about it, you may never get over it." Luke patted the table. "I don't want to see you fighting with Ryan or anyone else for the matter." He said as he stood up. "And Jess," he turned to his nephew. "I'm sorry that you have to worry about your mom. I worry about her too. I wish there was something that I could do to make it better."

"You do make it better, Uncle Luke." Jess stood up. "You do." He looked at his uncle before walking to his bedroom.

Luke smiled. For the first time, he felt like he was doing something right where Jess was concerned. He might turn out okay after all.

"Oh Uncle Luke." Jess walked back into the room. "How was your date? Did you get a goodnight kiss?"

Luke chuckled. "It was cut short."

"You should get your goodnight kiss. You don't want to set a bad precedent."

"What do you know about setting a bad precedent?" Luke asked as he smiled.

Jess shrugged deviously and walked back to his room.

Luke thought about it. Jess was right. He didn't want their date to be ruined because of a teenager.

* * *

"So my mom was mad?" Rory asked Grace, who had already told the girls the story.

Grace nodded. "Yes. She seemed pretty mad."

"And they were fighting?" Lane asked.

Grace nodded again. She didn't want to repeat herself again.

"What were they fighting over?" Rory asked. Grace hadn't told them that part.

"It doesn't matter."

"It does matter." Lane told her. "Jess and Ryan are best friends."

"I know." Grace felt so bad. She couldn't believe she had let Jess kiss her. "I'm sure it will be fine."

Rory didn't believe her but decided not to press her for any more information.

"Rory we have to go." Lane said looking at her watch. "If I'm not home on time, my mom will never let me out of the house again."

"That's true." Rory knew she was right.

"I think Dean is waiting for you outside." Grace smiled. "I think he likes you."

"He totally likes you." Lane smiled and poked Rory. "It is super cute."

"Guys. He is just really nice. He doesn't like me."

"You are just being modest." Grace gave her a hug. "You should definitely date him. He is a real cutie. Not as cute as Ryan but pretty close."

"Duly noted." Rory smiled. "Thanks for having us."

"Thanks for coming. Tell your brother I will call him." Grace told her as they were leaving. She really hoped that Ryan wasn't mad at her.

"Hey." Dean greeted the girls when he saw them come outside. "I thought I could walk you home."

"Thanks, Dean." Rory smiled. She really did like him. She had never really liked a boy before. She wished she could tell if Dean really liked her.

"Yeah. Thanks, Dean." Lane smiled. She knew that Dean liked Rory. It was extremely obvious to everyone but Rory.

Rory and Dean walked Lane home. She was a few minutes early. Mrs. Kim had been waiting at the door.

"I can walk you home." Dean offered as they walked away from the Kim residence.

"Oh that's okay. I don't live too far away." Rory pointed to her house.

"Oh. Okay." Dean realized Rory was very independent.

"I had fun." Rory told him. "Glad that you got to come. Sorry Jess was kind of a jerk."

"It's okay. I had fun."

"Good. Well I guess I'll see you at school Monday."

"Yeah." Dean agreed. "Or maybe we could hangout sometime outside of school."

"We just did." Rory laughed.

"I mean again." Dean smiled nervously. "Just the two of us."

Rory smiled. "Sure." She was excited. She was pretty sure that Dean just asked her on a date. "That sounds good."

"Great. I'll call you."

"Okay." Rory had the biggest smile on her face. "I should go."

"Right. Yeah. Me too. Bye Rory Gilmore."

"Bye Dean." Rory turned to her house. She was beyond excited.

* * *

Lorelai was sitting at the kitchen table, immersed in her thoughts. Sookie had been gone for a little bit.

Ruby walked out of her bedroom. "Mommy."

"Hey sweetie." Lorelai helped the little girl into her lap.

"Did you have fun?" Ruby asked.

"I would have had more fun had your brother not snuck out of the house." Lorelai looked at her little girls face. "I heard you helped him."

"I didn't help him." Ruby lied.

"Ruby Victoria." Lorelai gave her a look. "Sookie said that you lied to her, and I know that Sookie wouldn't lie to me."

"I bribed him." Ruby said with a smile.

"What? I thought you didn't know what a bribe was."

"I figured it out."

"You shouldn't have done that." Lorelai said softly. "You should not have lied to Sookie. That was not good."

"I know, but Ryan really wanted to go out."

"But he knew he wasn't supposed to go, and you knew that he wasn't supposed to go." Lorelai tried to explain to her. "You should have told Sookie that he was leaving."

Ruby nodded. "I understand." Ruby gave her a kiss. "I'm sorry."

"Okay." Lorelai couldn't stay mad at her little girl for very long. She was just so cute. "So what was the bribe?"

"He has to play tea party with me anytime that I want too." Ruby smiled really big.

Lorelai laughed. "You are good."

Ruby nodded. "It is going to be so much fun."

"I can't wait to see it." Lorelai tickled her.

"Mommy. Mommy." Ruby giggled.

"Why don't you go back to bed?"

"Okay." Ruby stood up. "Can I get a glass of water?"

"Sure." Lorelai stood up and got Ruby a glass of water. "Okay. Sweetie. Good night."

"Good night, mommy." She took the water and went back to her room.

"Mom." Rory walked into the house.

"Hey hon." Lorelai walked out of the kitchen. "How was the party?"

"I heard you were there." Rory smiled at her mother.

"Yes. I made a quick appearance."

"How did that go?"

Lorelai frowned.

"That great."

"Oh yes." Lorelai sat on the couch. "He hates me even more than he did before."

"Ryan doesn't hate you."

"He thinks I act like your grandmother."

"That's not true." Rory reassured her. "You are way cooler than grandma."

"You should tell your brother that."

"I will. Trust me." Rory turned to her bedroom.

"Davey is here. I got you some pajamas out and put them in my bedroom. You can sleep with me tonight." Lorelai told her.

"Okay." She gave her a quick kiss. "Love you, mom."

"Love you too." Lorelai sighed. She should probably talk to Ryan. She hated fighting with her kids.

Upstairs Ryan was on the phone. "Grace I'm really sorry about tonight."

"It's okay. I just hope you aren't mad at me." Grace said on the other end of the phone.

"I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at Jess."

"It meant nothing." Grace promised him. "I like you."

"I like you too, Grace."

Outside of his room, Lorelai was about to knock until she heard his voice. He was obviously talking to someone. She decided it was in her best interest not to go in and get into another argument with him.

She was going to walk into her room when she heard a knock at the door. She walked downstairs. It was probably Sookie. Lorelai opened the door and smiled when she saw Luke. "Luke."

He didn't say anything before he leaned in and kissed her. It was a nice surprise. They finally pulled apart. "What was that for?" She asked.

"I didn't want the night to end without giving you a kiss." Luke smiled.

"I'm glad you did." She leaned in and gave him another kiss. The night hadn't been ruined after all.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	46. Horrible Storyteller

**Thank you all so much for the reviews. I agree Lorelai should have been harder on Ruby and trust me when I say it will come up again.**

 **I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 46: Horrible Storyteller**

The next day Ryan was lying on the front porch throwing a baseball up in the air. He didn't want to be inside with his mom. He was still mad at her, and honestly she was still mad at him.

It was only the two of them at the moment. Sookie had stopped by to pick up Davey and of course Ruby asked to spend the day with them. Before she could go, Lorelai made her apologize to Sookie for lying. She kind of regretted not punishing her and hoped that it didn't come back to bite her in the butt. Rory was with Lane. And Ryan was stuck at home. It was Saturday, and he wanted to see Grace and make sure she wasn't interested in Jess.

Luke walked up the front porch steps and chuckled. "What are you doing?"

"Throwing the ball." Ryan said matter-of-factly.

"Oh yes." Luke smiled. "I can see that. I meant why are you outside?"

"Because the only other place I can be is inside, and my mom is inside. I don't want another lecture." Ryan said with attitude. "Luckily for me she lets me out of the house, but I'm sure I can't go further than the porch or else the firing squad will come after me." Ryan threw the baseball up in the air.

Luke caught it.

"Hey." Ryan said as he sat up.

"I'm sure things with your mom aren't that bad. She seems a lot cooler than most moms I know." Luke hoped to help the situation.

"You have to think that. You are dating her." Ryan pointed out.

Luke shook his head. "I would think your mom was cool whether I was dating her or not." Luke sat beside him.

"Aren't you here to see my mom?" Ryan wondered.

"I'm here to see you."

"Me." Ryan pointed at himself. "Why me?" He was curious. "Wait a minute." He paused. "She told you to talk to me. You are supposed to convince me not to be mad at her." Ryan figured.

Luke shook his head again. "I don't think your mom needs my help when it comes to parenting."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "She is being unfair." He complained for the nine thousandth time. "I get what I did was wrong. It won't happen again. I tried to tell her that."

"I don't think it is that easy when you are a parent."

Ryan sighed. "Luke, you can just tell my mom you talked to me. I'll cover for you."

"Your mom didn't send me." Luke explained again. "I'm here all on my own."

"Oh."

"I know you are pissed that she grounded you."

"Yeah. She has been my shadow for the past week and now I'm not allowed to leave the house for two weeks. It feels like a lifetime." The teenage complaining might never stop.

Luke took a breath as he thought about what he was going to say. He really wanted to get through to him. "I don't know if you knew this, but my mom died when I was pretty young. It was just me, my sister, and my dad. I tried to help out as much as possible. My dad and I became pretty close, and then as I got older I joined the wrestling team." Luke paused. "I didn't have as much time for him. I started hanging out with my wrestling buddies. My dad didn't like them. He said he had a bad feeling about them. I was a stupid teenager. I thought he was jealous."

Ryan sighed. "Luke, what does this have to do with me?"

"I'm getting there."

"You are a horrible storyteller. Don't quit your day job." Ryan said, only half-joking.

Luke gave him a look. "Thanks." He said sarcastically. "I promise this is going somewhere." Luke told him as he tossed the ball from hand to hand. "One weekend after a big win, we went out and drank. I had never drank before and didn't know my limit. I was trying to impress my friends." Luke grimaced as he remembered that night. Sometimes it felt like just yesterday. "I got pretty sick. I ended up with alcohol poisoning. My dad freaked out. He grounded me and told me outside of wrestling I couldn't hang out with those guys. I thought he was being unfair and overprotective."

Inside the house, Lorelai walked downstairs. She heard the voices and stood by the window to listen. She smiled when she realized the other voice was Luke's.

"A few weekends after, they asked me to hang out again. My dad wouldn't let me go and to make matters worse he made me sit downstairs with him and my sister all night." Luke took a breath. Other than his dad, he had never talked about the next part with anyone else. He could tell Ryan was actually listening and thought it was the right time to finally talk about it. "The next morning we woke up to news that the guys had been in a car accident. Two of them were killed instantly. One was seriously injured, and the other got out of prison not too long ago." Luke closed his eyes as he thought about it.

Ryan was surprised. So was Lorelai.

"There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about it. It could have been me if my dad hadn't been so hard on me." Luke hoped Ryan understood what he was trying to say. "I realized my dad was just looking out for me. Out of all of the people in the world he always had my back." He sighed and looked at Ryan. "Being a parent is not an easy job. You have to make decisions that are in the best interest of your kid and most times the kid doesn't see it that way. You probably won't understand what your mom is trying to do until you have kids. It puts things in a whole new perspective."

Ryan nodded. "I get it."

"She is just trying to protect you, and it is even harder because she is a single parent."

Inside the house, Lorelai had tears in her eyes as she listened to the story and thought about Ryan.

"I really scared her, didn't I?" Ryan finally realized.

Luke nodded and touched Ryan's shoulder. "A parent's worst fear is losing a child. Hell, I feel that way about Jess, and I'm only his uncle." Luke smiled when he thought about his nephew. He was very special to Luke. He wasn't sure what he would ever do without Jess. He hoped he never had to find out. "My dad told me that he never wanted to live in a world that didn't have me or my sister in it. He said it was because we were everything he ever dreamed of, and he would do anything to keep his dreams alive."

"Oh." Ryan had never seen Luke like this before.

"I'm sure that is exactly how your mom feels."

Ryan nodded. He really was beginning to understand.

"I don't want you to ever do something like that again." Luke warned.

Ryan felt like it was very father-like. He wasn't used to having a real father figure.

"I've gotten used to having you around, and I care a whole lot about your mom." Luke admitted.

Lorelai smiled.

"I don't ever want to see her that upset ever again. Hell I don't ever want to be that scared again." Luke informed him.

"You were scared?" Ryan couldn't imagine Luke ever being scared of anything. He was such a tough guy.

"Hell yes. I didn't know what was going to happen to you. Your body was as cold as ice." Luke could still remember exactly how he had felt that night. "I just kept praying that you would be okay." He looked at Ryan. "Your actions effected a lot of people. You have to remember that next time."

"I'm sorry." Ryan apologized. "I'm really sorry."

Lorelai smiled again. She felt like Luke had finally been able to do what she had failed to do, make Ryan understand.

"I don't think I'm the one you need to apologize too."

"I'll apologize to my mom."

Lorelai decided to stop listening. She had heard everything she needed to hear.

"Not just your mom."

"Who?"

"Jess."

"Jess," Ryan was surprised. "Why do I need to apologize to him? He is the one that kissed my girlfriend."

"I think once you talk to him the two of you can get that straightened out."

"I still don't understand why I need to apologize."

"You scared the hell out of him too. I know you might not understand this, but Jess has been through a lot. More than most adults have to go through. He has spent his whole life being disappointed by his mother. She made numerous bad decisions over and over again, never thinking about Jess or anyone else for that matter. He had to watch an endless array of men come in and out of his life. He was never able to make a real connection with any of them without being crushed by their departure." Luke hated that for Jess. It wasn't fair. "You are the first real friend that Jess has ever had. I think he is scared of being disappointed again."

Ryan hadn't thought about Jess. The truth was he hadn't thought about anyone else.

"You two need to talk."

Ryan nodded.

Luke looked at his watch. "I should probably get back to the diner. Caesar freaks out if I'm gone too long."

"Aren't you going to see my mom?"

"I'll see her later. You don't even have to tell her that I was here. Our little secret."

Ryan smiled. Luke was really good for his mom, even Ryan could see that.

Luke stood up.

"Hey Luke." Ryan stopped him.

"Yeah buddy." Luke turned towards him.

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"For saving my life." Ryan smiled. "I don't think I ever thanked you."

"I'm just glad you are okay." Luke smiled. "I don't ever want to have to do it again." He warned.

"I got it. I promise."

"Good." Luke hoped that his talk helped. He meant everything that he had said. "And just remember, Lorelai Gilmore is one of the best moms. You hit the mom lottery."

"Yeah. I know." Ryan knew he was right, and he felt bad for giving her such a hard time. He really needed to apologize to both her and Jess.

* * *

Jess was at the diner clearing tables when Grace walked in. She spotted him rather quickly. The diner wasn't all that busy. "Hey." She tapped his shoulder.

"Hi." He said nervously.

"Do you have a minute?"

Jess looked around. He grabbed the plates. "Let me take this to the back. I'll be right back." He walked away and Grace sat down at the table he had just cleared.

Jess quickly came back and sat down. "I don't have very long."

"Okay." Grace nodded. "I thought we should talk about what happened last night."

"I…I…know."

"The kiss was." Grace didn't know how to say it.

"I shouldn't have done it." Jess said quickly.

"I really like Ryan."

"I know."

"I don't want it to be awkward." Grace smiled. "I really like you as a friend. I don't want you pining for me."

"Oh whoa." Jess stopped her. "I'm not pining for you. I shouldn't have kissed you. I promise that it won't be awkward."

"You don't like me?" Grace was now confused. Why would he kiss her if he didn't like her?"

"I like you." Jess said. "As a friend."

"But you kissed me."

Jess nodded. "I know. I was jealous of you and Ryan."

"You like Ryan?" Grace was even more confused.

"He's my best friend." Jess told her. "I was mad at him."

"Oh."

"I want us all to be friends." Jess admitted. "I like it that way."

"And you aren't jealous anymore?" Grace asked. "You only kissed me because you were mad at Ryan."

"It's weird I know. I'm sorry you had to be in the middle."

"So friends." She extended her hand to him.

Jess shook her hand. "Friends."

Grace smiled. "You and Ryan need to make up."

Jess shrugged.

"I like it best when we are all friends."

Jess nodded. He did too.

* * *

Lorelai was upstairs in her bedroom folding the laundry. She still couldn't believe that Luke had talked to Ryan. It made her extremely happy to have someone like Luke in her life. She turned around when she heard a tap on her door.

"Mom." Ryan said as he walked in slowly.

"Hey kid." She looked at him and then back at the laundry.

"Need some help?"

Lorelai chuckled. "Laundry. You want to help me do the laundry?"

Ryan nodded. "Sure. I don't have anything else to do."

"I can always use some help." Lorelai handed him a towel. "I like three folds."

"I know." He smiled at her.

They folded in a silence for a few moments. "Mom." He turned towards her. "I've had some time to think."

"Good. That's what you are supposed to be doing." Lorelai reminded him.

Ryan nodded. "I'm sorry." He said sincerely. "Seriously. I can't imagine how you felt when I ran out of the party or when you heard I had taken dad's car or even when you saw me in the hospital. You didn't deserve that and you were right. I didn't think about how my actions or the consequences." Ryan hoped that she believed him because he really meant it. After his talk with Luke, he felt really bad about how he had been acting.

Lorelai had tears in her eyes.

"Oh mom. You aren't supposed to cry."

"I was so scared that I was going to lose you." She pulled him into her arms. "You aren't invincible." She reminded him.

Ryan nodded. "I know."

"No. You don't. All teenagers think they are invincible." They pulled apart.

"Even you?" Ryan questioned.

"Most definitely me. But I figured it out when the doctor handed me two babies." She touched his nose playfully. "I don't want you to have to figure it out the hard way."

"I know."

"Here. Come here." She moved the clothes to the other side of the bed, and they sat down. "You are so much like me, and I think that is what scares me the most."

"There is nothing wrong with being like you."

"Don't flatter me." She laughed.

Ryan made a face.

"I want you to promise to talk to me next time. We can't figure things out together if you don't talk to me."

Ryan nodded.

"I never felt like I could talk to my parents about anything. I don't want you to ever feel like that. You can tell me anything. I will understand, and we can work through anything together." Lorelai hoped that he understood that.

"I know. I'm sorry for comparing you to grandma. I didn't mean it."

"Yeah next time that's an automatic grounding." Lorelai joked.

Ryan laughed.

"I was hovering." She admitted. "I probably shouldn't have handled things that way. I also should have trusted you to stay at home without Sookie. You aren't five."

"I haven't giving you much reason to trust me lately."

"No. But I shouldn't treat you like a baby. You aren't a baby. You don't need a babysitter."

"So you admit she was my babysitter?"

"Yes. We know Ruby hasn't needed a babysitter since she was three." She joked.

"Yeah. I think you are going to have your hands full with that one."

"Yeah. You need to stop teaching her all of your tricks."

"You may just want to lock her up now." Ryan laughed.

Lorelai was happy to see that smile. "But I heard you were playing tea party for a while."

"Yep." Ryan frowned. "Maybe it won't be so bad."

"You know it will be." Lorelai laughed.

"So mom."

"Yes."

"I know I am grounded, and I'm not trying to get out of it." He started.

"You're not?" She gave him a pointed look.

He shook his head. "I've been a jerk to Jess. I need to apologize."

"Can't you apologize to him at school on Monday?"

"Please mom." Ryan hoped she would say yes. "You can go with me."

"Fine but after you apologize we are coming back home."

"Okay." Ryan hugged his mom. "Thanks for being so cool."

Lorelai smiled. "You are still grounded for two weeks." She was not going to back down this time.

He nodded. "And you're still cool." Ryan walked out of the room.

Lorelai was relieved and thankful for Luke. She would see how long his new found attitude would last.

* * *

Jess opened the door to Luke's apartment. "Ryan."

"Hey. Do you have a minute?"

"Depends." Jess paused. "Are you here to fight again?"

"You jumped me." Ryan reminded him.

"I remember it differently but whatever. You deserved it either way."

Ryan walked in to the apartment. "You were kissing my girlfriend. What was I supposed to do?"

"I don't know."

"I didn't come here to talk to you about Grace. She promised me that it didn't mean anything to her." Ryan told him.

"It didn't." Jess told him honestly. "I shouldn't have kissed her. I don't like her like that."

Ryan nodded. He did believe him. He had no reason not to. "I believe you."

"Really."

"Yeah."

"Okay." Jess walked further into the apartment. Ryan followed him. "Good. So if you aren't here to talk about Grace, then why are you here?"

"I'm sorry." Ryan said sincerely.

"For?" Jess wanted him to say it.

"I've been a jerk lately." Ryan felt bad about it, especially after his conversation with Luke. It had put a lot of things in perspective for him.

"Yeah." Jess agreed. It was definitely true.

"I haven't had a whole lot of friends. I don't really know what I'm doing."

"Yeah. Me either." Jess admitted.

"I don't want to fight."

"I agree. I'm not really good with words."

"I guess that is another thing we have in common."

"Friends?" Jess extended in his hand.

"Friends." Ryan shook his hand like men would do.

"Promise you won't go get yourself killed."

Ryan shook his head. "I know it was stupid. You have nothing to worry about. My mom is never going to let me out of her sight again." That was also the truth.

"Good."

They were silent for a few moments. "You don't like Grace?" Ryan brought it back up.

Jess shook his head. "No. I like her as a friend. That's it."

"I really liked her." Ryan smiled when he thought about her.

"I know you do." Jess walked over to the TV. "Do you want to play some video games?"

"I can't. My mom is downstairs."

"You weren't kidding." Jess frowned.

"Nope. She means business this time."

"You did ruin their date last night. Maybe she would be thankful if you played video games with me for a few minutes." Jess thought it was a good idea.

"You are probably right." He walked towards the couch. "I'd be doing her a favor."

"Exactly my point." He handed him a controller.

* * *

Downstairs in the Diner, Lorelai was sitting at the counter, drinking a cup of coffee. Luke had been MIA, but he finally came in.

"Hey." He was surprised to see her. "What are you doing here? I figured you would be with Ryan all day."

"He is upstairs." She pointed. "Talking to Jess. He has been up there a while. So either they killed each other or they made up and are playing video games."

"I'm going to go with the latter."

"Me too." Lorelai smiled. "But I really wanted to see you so I didn't go up there yet."

"I'm thankful you didn't." He smiled at her. He could stare at her all day.

"Do you have a second?" She asked as she stood up from her stool.

He nodded, and she took his hand and led him to the back storage room. She shut the door and before Luke could ask her what she was doing, she had wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a passionate kiss. Luke thought if it was possible to get pregnant from kissing, then they would both be pregnant, with triplets. "Wow." He said as they pulled apart. It was the best kiss he had ever experienced. "What was that for? I mean, I'm not complaining by any meanings. I just wasn't expecting that."

"I think you are an amazing man Luke Danes, and I thought I should show you." She held onto him.

"You definitely showed me."

"I overheard some of your conversation with Ryan." She informed him.

"Oh I'm sorry if I overstepped my bounds."

"I wouldn't have kissed you like that if I thought you had."

"I just wanted to help him understand how you were feeling."

"It worked. He apologized, and he didn't just do it to get out of trouble."

"Good." Luke smiled.

"I'm really sorry about your friends." Lorelai couldn't imagine what he had gone through.

"It was a long time ago."

"Something like that stays with you forever." Lorelai knew it had to.

"I don't think I ever got in trouble again after that."

"Maybe you rubbed off on Ryan." Lorelai hoped.

"I think you have rubbed off on Ryan. He is a good kid." Luke really believed that to be true.

"I'm really thankful he has you in his life." She touched his face softly.

Luke leaned in and kissed her.

"I should probably pull him away from his video games and take him home."

"Or give him five more minutes." Luke kissed her cheek. "He's going to be grounded for a while. What's a few minutes?"

"You make a very good point Mr. Danes."

She leaned back in to kiss him. It had been a long few days. They deserved to have some alone time together.

* * *

Let me know what you thought!


	47. Third Try

**So excited! We hit 300 reviews! I am so glad that you all are still reading this story! I really do enjoy writing it.**

 **The next few chapters are shorter, but it seemed to flow better to break them up into separate chapters. I hope you all enjoy. And thanks again for all the support! You all are the best!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 47: Third Try**

Lorelai and the kids were sitting in the Diner eating breakfast. It had been a long week for all of them. Both teenagers had two test a piece to study for and Lorelai had been swamped at the Inn. She had barely gotten to see Luke all week. He had been busy too, and their schedules hadn't matched up.

"Eat up sweetie." Lorelai told Ruby as she watched her play with her food.

"I'm not hungry." Ruby pouted. Her attitude had not been the best lately. Lorelai wasn't a fan.

"Are we related?" Lorelai joked.

"That's not a funny joke, mommy." Ruby gave her mom a look.

"Get used to it." Ryan told his little sister.

"She uses that one a lot." Rory added. "We think she needs to get some new material."

"Hey you two. You have to be on team mommy."

"Eat your waffles." Ryan pointed at his little sister's plate.

"Drink your milk." Rory laughed.

"That's better." Lorelai smiled at her eldest children.

"Fine." Ruby glared as she took a bite of her waffles.

"She's your kid." Ryan pointed at his mom.

"With your attitude." Lorelai quipped. "So." She decided to change the subject. "What are your plans for tonight?"

"I was wondering if I go to Lane's." Rory asked.

"For dinner?" Lorelai wondered.

Rory nodded.

"Last time you went there she fed you eggless egg salad."

"That's disgusting." Ryan wrinkled his nose.

"It taste worse than it sounds, but I'm going to brave it." She looked at her mom. "Is it okay?"

Lorelai nodded. "If it is okay with Mrs. Kim then it is okay with me."

Ryan gave his sister a look. He knew she was lying. He had met Dean earlier in the week. He seemed nice, but no one would ever be good enough for his sister. Ryan also knew that Dean had asked her on a date for that night. He wasn't sure why Rory would lie to their mom. She usually told their mom everything.

"I guess it is just the three of us." She looked at Ryan and Ruby.

"Thanks for reminding me that I'm still grounded." Ryan frowned. He had one more week left of his punishment, and he felt like it was never going to end.

"I wasn't reminding you." Lorelai remarked.

"Sure. Whatever."

Lorelai smiled. He had been really good the entire week. She was actually pretty proud of him. "I'll let you pick the movie."

"Oh joy." He waved his hands sarcastically.

"I want to pick the movie." Ruby pouted.

"You picked the move last time." Ryan remembered.

"Maybe we will watch two movies." Lorelai thought that might be a good idea.

"Great." Ryan could think of a million different things he would rather do than stay at home on a Friday night.

Lorelai looked at his face. He looked pitiful. "Maybe you can invite Grace over." Lorelai suggested.

"Really?" He was surprised.

"Sure. I'll order a pizza and get some good snacks."

"We have to stay at home." He knew not to push his luck.

Lorelai nodded. "Yes." She was willing to give him a little freedom but not too much. She wasn't going to back down this time.

"I'll take it." Ryan was excited that he would get to spend some time with Grace.

Luke walked down the stairs. He looked exhausted.

"Ryan. Will you walk Ruby to school?"

"Sure. Come on Rubes." He stood up and grabbed his bag.

"Kiss mommy." She puckered up.

"Love you." Ruby said as she kissed her.

"Love you more."

"Bye mom." Ryan told her.

Lorelai ruffled his hair. "Have a good day."

"I'll walk with you. I've got time." Rory followed him. "Bye mom."

"Bye sweets." Lorelai gave her an air kiss.

Lorelai stood up and walked to the counter. "Hey you." She greeted Luke.

"Hey." He gave her a quick kiss.

"You look beat."

"I am. I had Caesar open because I'm so tired. I never do that." He could probably count it on one hand. "I haven't been able to sleep this week. I feel like I haven't seen you enough."

"You haven't."

"We still need an official first date."

"It will happen. I'm sure of it." She looked at her watch. "Oh crap. I've got to get to the Inn."

"Busy schedule?" He asked.

"This morning, but after that, not too crazy. I'll try to come in at lunch." She hadn't been able to do that all week.

"Okay." He smiled. He actually had something special planned for her, and he knew she had no idea.

* * *

Rory and Ryan were walking to the high school. They had just dropped Ruby off at school. "So why did you lie to mom." Ryan stopped her.

"What?" Rory looked at him. "I didn't lie to mom."

"Yes you did." He smiled and nodded. "And you never lie to mom. Ever. That's my job." He pointed to himself. "I'm pretty good at it."

Rory just stared at him.

"You have a date with Dean." He remembered.

"No. I don't." Rory shook her head. "We are just hanging out." Neither one of them had called it a date.

"At Lane's house?" Ryan crossed his arms. "I don't know how Mrs. Kim is going to feel about that."

"We won't be at Lane's." She admitted.

"But you told mom that you'd be at Lane's."

"We aren't doing anything but grabbing dinner and studying." She tried to rationalize it in her head.

"Exactly. Why didn't you tell mom?" Ryan wondered. "She's cool with dinner and studying."

"But." Rory started.

"You didn't think she would be cool with the Dean part." He finished her sentence. He knew exactly what she was thinking.

Rory nodded. He was right. She wasn't sure how her mom would take it. Boys were a new thing for them.

"She doesn't seem to mind Grace." Ryan thought.

"Her mind was preoccupied with other things when she found out about Grace." She reminded him.

"You should tell her about Dean."

"I will. Eventually."

"Tonight. You should tell her tonight. Before you go on your hangout." Ryan suggested.

"I can't believe you of all people are giving me a hard time about this."

"Because you aren't me. You and mom talk about everything. She would want to know about Dean."

"I'll tell her. I promise. But you can't tell her."

Ryan shook his head. "I won't tell her, but you should. Tonight." He told her again.

"I can't tell her tonight. If I tell her then she will figure out that I lied to her about going to Lane's, and she won't let me go at all."

"Wow!" He was impressed. "You really are becoming me."

Rory hit his shoulder. "Come on. We don't want to be late."

"There's the Rory I know and love." He laughed as they started walking again.

* * *

Lorelai walked into the kitchen at the Inn. She was exasperated. "I quit." She exclaimed as she made her way to the coffee. "I can't do this anymore."

"What's wrong, sweetie?" Sookie asked as she finished icing a strawberry cake.

"The Barkers have decided to change the flowers they ordered along with the wedding colors. They are adding red. I have to rearrange everything." Lorelai sighed loudly. "These people can't make up their minds about anything. I doubt they will even get married. She will change her mind right the last minute. I hope they know the check in nonrefundable."

"What about the cake?" Sookie asked as if she hadn't even been listening to Lorelai. "They aren't changing the cake are they? They can't change the cake."

"No. But they ask that you add some red."

"Red does not go with the cake."

"That's what they want and we are here to please." Lorelai was so frustrated. "Sometimes I wish I would have been an accountant. They don't have to deal with people."

"You hate numbers."

"I could learn to love them. Because at this moment I hate people." She took a sip of her coffee. "Besides any job can be made better with coffee. It is liquid gold."

Sookie touched her shoulder. "It will be okay. They will be married soon enough, and you will never have to deal with them again."

"I've got my whole body crossed." Lorelai joked.

"Lorelai, there you are." Mia said as she came into the kitchen. "I was looking for you."

"Hey Mia." She smiled at the older woman. "I needed another cup of coffee."

"I need you outside." Mia told her.

"Are the Barkers back?" She worried. "Please if you care about me at all don't make me deal with the Barkers."

"Come on." She grabbed her arm softly. "This is important."

"My head might explode if they change something else."

"Here." Mia handed her a jacket. "Put this on."

"You weren't kidding. I really have to go outside?"

"Just do it." Mia pushed her out of the kitchen and into the main entrance.

"You are being really bossy."

"Good thing." Mia smiled. "Because I am your boss."

"Oh Mia."

They walked outside, and Lorelai was surprised to see Luke bundled up, surrounded by a picnic.

"Luke." She walked further outside.

"Have fun." Mia pushed her forward with a giggle.

"What is all of this?" She couldn't stop smiling.

"It is our third try at a first date." Luke smiled as he handed her a blanket.

"It is freezing out here."

"I know. I should have thought this through a little more. I thought it would be romantic if your hands don't fall off."

She was freezing. "Wow. Luke. This is the sweetest thing."

He led her to the picnic. "I made all of your favorites." He hoped she liked it. "I know you love snow."

"Yes. I don't usually eat in it."

"It probably wasn't the best idea I have ever had." He admitted. "I just wanted to do something special for you. The first date my parents ever went on was a picnic. I still remember my mom talking about it." He held her hand. "I figured it might be better to try a date in the middle of the day. We've both been so busy this week, and as far as we know your kids are at school."

"You've thought of everything."

"Except for the fact that picnics aren't all that romantic in the freezing cold."

She leaned in and kissed him.

"Come on you two." Mia said making them pull apart. "I cleared you off a table."

"Oh thank God." Lorelai stood up.

"I love that woman." He grabbed the contents of the picnic and followed Lorelai into the Inn.

"Thanks for the effort. I really like this romantic side of you."

"I'm not very good at it."

Lorelai shook her head. "I think you are doing just fine." She smiled. She watched Luke follow Mia to their table. It felt good. It felt right. For the first time in her life, everything felt exactly how it should be.

* * *

 **I hope you guys liked this chapter. I thought about a picnic date, but then realized that it would probably be cold during the time of year this is set in. But I think it worked out. Let me know what you thought!**


	48. Do you go to Church?

**Another short chapter but just means I can post sooner rather than later. As always thanks for the reviews and support. It is greatly appreciated.**

 **Mrs. Kim makes an appearance in this chapter. I love Mrs. Kim. She is one of my favorite characters.**

 **Hope you all enjoy this chapter**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 48: Do you go to Church?**

After her lunch date with Luke, Lorelai found it hard to concentrate on work. She was mesmerized by Luke. She never imagined that he could be so romantic. She couldn't remember a time in her marriage where Christopher had done something so special for her.

Mia could tell the young woman was on cloud nine and told her to go home early. She deserved it because she had been working overtime for the past week preparing for the upcoming weddings. Winter weddings seemed to be all the craze at the Inn this year.

Lorelai was so grateful to have Mia as a boss. She was kind, understanding, and smart. All the things Lorelai aspired to be.

After leaving work, Lorelai decided to stop by Doose's Market to get a few snacks for movie night with the kids. As she picked up a bag of chips, she noticed Mrs. Kim. "Mrs. Kim, hi." She greeted her with a smile.

Mrs. Kim did not return the smile. Lorelai wasn't sure that she knew how to smile. "Lorelai." She said with a hard tone.

"How are you?" Lorelai asked, making small talk.

"I'm just fine." Mrs. Kim nodded.

Lorelai made a face. She was not an easy woman to talk to. "Thank you for letting Rory have dinner at your house tonight. She really loves spending time with Lane."

"What are you talking about?" Mrs. Kim acted confused.

"Rory is having dinner at your house tonight."

Mrs. Kim shook her head. "No she isn't. We have church tonight. She has never gone to church with us. As far as I know you have never gone to church."

"We've been to church." Lorelai defended. Although, she wasn't sure the last time that had happened.

"Every week?" She asked.

Lorelai shook her head. "Not every week."

"Every month?"

Lorelai shook her head again, feeling guilty. "Not every month."

"At least once a year?" Mrs. Kim looked at her with disgrace in her eyes.

"Mrs. Kim, I feel like I am on trial here." Lorelai held out her hands dramatically.

"Church is very important." She said simply.

"I agree." Lorelai knew that was the best answer.

"You come with sometime?"

"Maybe so." Lorelai smiled slightly. She had a feeling it would never happen.

Mrs. Kim clapped her hands. "I'll take it." She paused and then looked at Lorelai. "But Rory is not coming with us."

"Oh." Lorelai was now very confused. "My mistake. I must have misunderstood her." She was sure she hadn't though.

"Maybe she lied to you."

Lorelai shook her head. "Oh no, Mrs. Kim. Rory doesn't lie."

"She is a teenager. They lie, and it is your job to stop her."

"Thanks for the parenting tip."

"Anytime." Mrs. Kim nodded. "I must be going."

"Right. See you later." Lorelai watched the woman walk away. She was completely lost in thought. She was worried. Rory had never lied to her before. It had to be some kind of mistake.

* * *

"Hey." Dean said as he found Rory sitting in the hallway reading.

"Hey." She smiled as she looked up from her book.

"I feel like I haven't seen you all day." He touched her shoulder gently.

"Sorry." She closed her book. "I was helping in the office during homeroom."

"Why?" Dean wondered.

"It looked good on my application. So I signed up to help a few hours a week." She stood up from the bench.

"For college?" He was confused. "Aren't we a little young to worry about college?"

Rory shook her head. "No way. I've been thinking about college since I was three. I'm going to Harvard or maybe Yale. My grandfather went to Yale."

"Oh."

"But the application I was referring to was for Chilton."

Dean had no idea what Chilton was. "Chilton?"

"It is a private school in Hartford."

"You're going to go to school in Hartford?" He was surprised.

"That's the plan." Rory said with a smile.

"When?"

"Next semester." She could tell he didn't seem too happy about it.

"Oh."

"Are you okay?" She asked.

"Yeah." He lied a little. "I just didn't know you were leaving."

"I'll still live in Stars Hollow."

"That's cool. I'm happy for you." Dean smiled at her.

"I haven't gotten in yet." She said quickly. She didn't want him to be upset.

"You will." He reassured her. "You are the smartest person I know.

Rory smiled. He was the sweetest guy she knew.

"I'm excited about our date." He decided to change the subject.

"Me too." She had never been on a real date before. She was a little nervous. She didn't want to screw it up.

"I thought I could pick you up around 6:30."

Rory shook her head. "Actually. I'll just meet you at Al's."

"You don't want me to pick you up?"

"Not this time."

"Oh. Okay." Dean decided to let it go.

Rory felt bad for not telling her mom about Dean. For some reason she was really nervous about it. She wasn't sure how her mom would react.

* * *

Later that evening, Rory was getting ready. Lorelai tapped on her door. "Hey hun."

She noticed Rory was wearing her cute red sweater. She wouldn't wear that sweater to Lane's.

"Hi mom."

"So you're still going to Lane's tonight?"

Rory thought about it. She could tell her the truth.

Lorelai hoped that her daughter would tell her the truth. Where was she really going?"

"Yeah." Rory lied. "We are going to study."

"Oh." She was crushed. She sighed and tried to figure out how she was going to handle it. She could bust her out and make her stay home, or she could let her go and hope that Rory would come to her about whatever it was. Lorelai knew how Emily Gilmore would have handled the situation. So she decided to go in the other direction. "Okay well bring me back some eggless egg salad." She decided to make her feel guilty. A tactic Emily Gilmore also used many times before.

"Seriously?" Rory looked at her mom. "You would hate it."

"I thought it would be fun to dissect it and figure out what is actually in eggless egg salad."

"If there is any left over." Rory thought that was the best way to handle that question.

"Oh I'm sure there will be plenty of leftovers."

"Okay." Rory would about that later.

"Be home by 9." Lorelai said quickly. She didn't want her out too late, especially when she didn't know where she was going to be.

"9." Now Rory was really confused. "It's Friday. You usually let me stay out until 9:30 at least."

"I'm the mom. I can change the rules. I just want my sweet girl home early." She touched Rory's shoulder, hoping her plan was working.

"Okay. Fine." Rory did feel guilty, but she really wanted to go on her first date with Dean. She knew her mom would be upset about her keeping things from her.

"And please call if you are going to be late."

"I won't be late. I promise." She grabbed her backpack and walked out of her room. Lorelai followed her.

"You are taking your books?" Lorelai smiled. Maybe she was just going to the library. But why was she lying?

Rory nodded. "We are studying."

"You and Lane?"

Rory nodded again. "Yes."

"Alright." She realized she wasn't going to get it out of her daughter. "Have fun with Lane. Tell her I said hi."

"Mom, are you okay?"

No. Lorelai thought to herself. She was not okay. "Yeah I'm fine. Are you okay?"

"Yes. I'm fine. I've got to go." She gave her mother a quick kiss.

"Because you don't want to be late for dinner?" She tried one last time.

"Right. Bye. Love you."

"Love you too." Lorelai sighed. Parenting fail. She didn't like this at all. Her daughter was lying to her. She wasn't supposed to lie to her. Lorelai was freaking out on the inside.

What was Rory up too?

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought, and I will try to get the next chapter posted soon!**


	49. Dean Martin

**Thanks again for all the support! You guys are the best! I promise there will be more Ruby in chapters to come! I love her too!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 49: Dean Martin**

Lorelai was at home with Ryan, Ruby, and Grace. They had eaten dinner, played tea party with Ruby, and were now watching the Little Mermaid for the one hundredth time, much to Ryan's protest. He had softened when Grace admitted it was one of her favorites.

However, Lorelai was distracted. She had been all night. She couldn't stop thinking about Rory and all the crazy, dangerous things she could be getting into. She could be joining a biker gang for all Lorelai knew.

"Mom." Ryan leaned over and whispered. "Although I'm not a big fan of this movie, your constant fidgeting is driving me insane."

"Sorry." Lorelai couldn't help it.

"What's wrong?" Ryan asked.

"Shh." Ruby turned around and warned.

"Sorry." Lorelai apologized as she stood up. "I need to run an errand."

"Now?" Ryan asked, confused.

"Yes. I need to get something from the store."

"Doose's is closed." Ryan reminded her.

"Uh well maybe not."

"Yes it is. Every store in this town closes by eight."

"I just need to run an errand. That's all you need to know."

"You're just going to leave me here?" Not that he was complaining.

"Yes. I trust you."

"Really?" Ryan didn't believe. He knew she was up to something.

"At this very moment, I do, but can choose to change my mind tomorrow."

"Please shh. You are ruining it." Ruby told both of them.

"You have seen this movie a thousand times." Lorelai told her little girl.

"It will always end the same way." Ryan added.

Ruby frowned.

"I'll be back shortly." She looked at Ryan. "Don't leave this house and watch your sister."

"Okay."

She looked at Grace. "Grace you are in charge."

"I like the sound of that." She smiled as she playfully hit Ryan's shoulder. "Thanks, Ms. Gilmore."

"Lorelai."

"Lorelai." Grace said proudly.

"I'll be back." She left the house on a mission.

"No kissing. I'm still here." Ruby reminded her brother and his girlfriend.

Both teenagers smiled as they looked at each other.

* * *

Rory and Dean had finished dinner. They were having a pretty good time, even though Rory seemed distracted. "We can go sit under the gazebo." Dean suggested.

Rory nodded. "Okay. Sounds good."

"Is everything okay?" Dean asked as they sat down.

"Yeah." Rory lied.

"You don't seem like your normal cheerful self."

"I'm fine."

"I know what this is about." Dean thought.

"You do?" Rory was surprised.

"Chilton." Dean told her. "I should have been more supportive."

"It's okay. You were plenty supportive."

Dean shook his head. "I think it is great that you know what you want."

"Thanks. Really Dean. But I'm not upset about that."

"So you admit there is something wrong?"

Rory smiled. Dean was good. "I didn't tell my mom that we were going on a date."

"Okay." Dean didn't really see the problem.

"It's not okay. I tell my mom everything. I lied to her today. I've never lied to her before. If she knew I wasn't at Lane's eating eggless egg salad, she would be freaking out."

"What?" Dean was learning that Rory wasn't the easiest person to keep up with.

"I'm supposed to be at Lane's house eating eggless egg salad, and I don't know what I'm going to tell her when I don't bring her any home."

"Why would she want you too? That sounds horrible."

"We were going to laugh at it together."

"It will be okay." Dean touched her shoulder.

"I just hate feeling like this." Guilty. She was feeling guilty.

* * *

Lorelai had walked into town and spotted her daughter sitting under the gazebo with a boy. She realized that her daughter was on a date. She couldn't believe that Rory was on a date and didn't tell her about it. She hid behind a bush and watched their interaction. She couldn't hear anything. She felt stupid, but she also felt hurt.

"Lorelai."

She jumped when she felt someone touch her shoulder. "Oh God. Luke." She hit his shoulder. "You scared the hell out of me."

"What are you doing?" Luke asked.

"Hiding behind the bush." She pointed.

Luke chuckled. "Yes. I can see that. You Gilmores are so literal. Why are you doing that?" He rephrased.

"Over there." She pointed to the gazebo.

Luke looked. "Is that Rory? And Dean?" He looked back at Lorelai.

She made a face. "Dean. His name is Dean. Wait." She pointed at Luke. "How did you know about Dean?"

"He came into the diner with the kids the other day. He is an okay kid I guess." Luke didn't see the big deal. "I didn't know that he liked Rory though." He didn't know how he felt about that.

"You didn't tell me about Dean."

"I just told you I didn't know there was anything to tell."

"I can't believe I'm the last to know, and technically I still don't know. I'm doing the one thing I promised myself I would never do. I'm spying on my daughter." Lorelai hated it.

"Go home." Luke shrugged, still not seeing the problem.

"I can't go home. I'm frozen."

"Lorelai." Luke touched her shoulder.

"I can't believe she didn't tell me." Lorelai felt defeated. "Even worse she lied to me."

"She is a teenager." Luke reminded her.

"Rory is different."

"Teenagers are all the same." Although, Luke thought Rory was pretty exceptional. She was still a teenager.

"Not Rory." She looked back to the gazebo, but this time Rory and Dean were no longer there. "Hell. Where did she go? I lost her."

"Mom."

Lorelai turned around to see Rory and Dean standing in front of her. "Rory."

They stood awkwardly in front of each other. "Hi." Lorelai extended her hand. "I'm Lorelai. Rory's mom."

"Hey. I'm Dean." He shook her hand.

"Like Dean Martin?" Lorelai joked.

"Forester." Dean responded.

"Like the Bold and the Beautiful?" She smiled.

"Uh." Dean didn't know how to answer.

"Mom." Rory gave her a look.

Lorelai felt so uncool. She never felt uncool. "Nice to meet you Dean."

Rory turned to Dean. She felt so guilty. Dean could tell what she was thinking without her having to say it.

"I'll see you at school, Rory. Nice to meet you Ms. Gilmore." Dean said as he walked away.

Luke also took the hint that the two ladies needed to talk. "I'll see you." He kissed her forehead and left her with Rory.

"We need to talk." Lorelai told her daughter.

Rory nodded. "I know." It probably wasn't going to be a fun conversation.

* * *

Ryan and Grace were sitting on the couch together. The movie had finally ended, and Ruby had fallen asleep per usual.

"Is your life always like this?" Grace asked.

"Like what?"

"Filled with junk food, movie nights, and laughter."

Ryan smiled. He had never thought about it like that before. "Yeah. For the most part. Especially now that we live here. My mom is usually funnier. Her mind seemed preoccupied tonight."

"I think she is a lot of fun. My parents are not like your mom. They don't try to be my friends."

"She tries."

"You are really lucky."

"Yeah." He was beginning to realize that. "I guess so."

Grace smiled at him and reached for his hand. "I really like you, Ryan. I hope you know that."

"I like you a lot." He was quiet for a minute. "I know we already talked about this, but I'm sorry about how I acted when I saw you and Jess kissing."

"I understand why. I'd get upset if I saw you kissing someone else."

"I was a jerk."

"It's okay. I had a lot of fun tonight." Grace wanted him to know that. "I should probably go though."

"Yeah I guess so." He paused and then leaned in and kissed her.

* * *

Rory and Lorelai were now sitting under the gazebo, neither one knew what to say. Lorelai had never had to deal with something like this with her daughter.

Rory decided to go first. "I'm so sorry, mom. I feel so bad about lying to you." She said sincerely.

"Why did you lie to me?" Lorelai asked. "You didn't have too." She said before Rory could respond. "I wouldn't have freaked out. I knew this day was going to come. You are fifteen. You are going to date."

"I don't why I lied." It was the truth.

"You've got to trust me. Just like I have to trust you." Lorelai ran her fingers through Rory's hair. "I can't trust you if you keep things from me."

"I know. My stomach was hurting the whole time." She admitted. She was actually feeling much better. "What were you doing behind the bush?"

"Spying." Lorelai decided not to lie.

"Mom."

"You lied to me. I didn't know what else to do."

"I thought you were going to be at home. How did you know? Ryan told you didn't he?"

"Ryan knew." Lorelai was upset.

"Who told you?" Rory was curious.

"Mrs. Kim."

"How?"

"She didn't realize she was telling me. I saw her in the market and thanked her for letting you join them for dinner."

"So you knew before I left the house?" Rory put it all together.

Lorelai nodded.

"And you still let me go?" Rory was surprised.

"I wanted you to tell me the truth, and you should have. I was freaking out trying to figure out where you could be. I hated not knowing where you were. I don't want to ever feel like that again. It is the worst thing, especially after what Ryan pulled not so long ago."

"I'm really, really sorry. It will never happen again."

"Oh it probably will."

"No." Rory said quickly. "Never again. I promise. I never want to feel guilty again. It is the worst."

"Good." Lorelai smiled. "I never want to hide behind a bush again. Brought me back to this time when I was fourteen, and I was spying on this boy I like. That ended way worse though. I ended up tripping and falling and cutting my elbow. There was blood. You know I hate blood."

"I'm glad there was no blood this time."

"Me too. I was more careful this time."

"You should ground me for at least a week or even longer. I deserve it." Rory told her. She knew she deserved it, and she was okay with whatever punishment her mom decided to give her.

"Rory." She patted her knee. "I don't need your help with your punishment." Lorelai paused.

Rory nodded. She just felt so guilty.

"But I do agree with you." Lorelai informed her. "You are grounded for a week, and the next time you have a date with Dean, it will be at our house. I want to properly meet him."

"You met him." Rory thought.

"Rory." Lorelai gave her a look. "Meeting him after being caught spying behind a bush is not a proper meeting. We had a two second interaction. That's not going to cut it. I've got to get to know him before you can date him."

"Okay. But Grace and Ryan are allowed to go out." Rory argued a little, which surprised Lorelai.

"Yes. I know Grace. I approve of Grace as much as humanly possible for me to do."

"What does that mean?"

"It is hard for me. You two are growing up so quickly. You aren't little kids anymore. He has a girlfriend, and you have a boyfriend." It made her sad to think about. She wished that she could bottle them up and keep them young forever.

"I don't have a boyfriend." Rory shook her head.

"You will. I can tell that he likes you." It felt weird for her to say that about her little girl.

"That's what Lane and Grace said."

"They knew too?" Lorelai figured out the list was endless.

"Sorry."

"Rory, I want you to tell me all about it. Even the parts you don't think I will want to hear."

"Mom, I'm only fifteen."

"And I'm 31. You are smart. Do the math."

"I promise to talk to you."

"No more lying."

"I promise. I don't know how Ryan does it."

"Easily." Lorelai laughed.

"But in his defense, he tried to convince me to tell you the truth, but I didn't want you to be mad at me for lying in the first place. I really wanted to go on this date."

"That makes me proud of my boy."

"He's really growing up." Rory smiled.

Lorelai touched her shoulder. "I love you."

"I love you too, mom. I really am sorry."

"I know kid." She stood up. "Let's get out of here."

"Good idea." Rory hugged her mom tightly. She was so thankful to have a mom that was so understanding.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought! I ended up really liking this chapter.**


	50. No More Milkshakes

**I can't believe this is chapter 50! I never thought the story would make this far. I'm excited. I hope you all are excited too! I am thankful for each and every review, favorite, and follow!**

 **This chapter is much, much longer than the last two chapters. I hope you enjoy!**

 **Oh and there is a time jump here.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 50: No More Milkshakes**

A month had passed in Stars Hollow. Ryan and Rory were no longer grounded and things were going pretty good for the two of them. Ryan was dating Grace, and Rory was dating Dean. Dean still hadn't kissed Rory, and they weren't official boyfriend and girlfriend, but she was okay with that. She just enjoyed spending time with him. Lorelai liked him. She felt like he was a good kid and approved of the relationship. She still felt weird to have two kids who were dating, but she hoped it would get easier.

As for Luke and Lorelai, things were going pretty well. They spent as much time together as possible. She and the kids ate dinner at the diner often and Jess and Luke came to their house when they didn't come to the diner. Lorelai couldn't believe how quickly they felt like a family. It felt weird to her when they were apart.

Although, they had spent a lot of time together, they hadn't had much time to be alone. There was always something getting in the way of that. Luke felt like it was time. He hoped Lorelai felt the same way.

On Wednesday night, he sat on Lorelai's couch waiting for her to finish putting Ruby to bed. The teenagers were working on a project at the library. He knew they would be home soon. Lorelai had been trying for an hour to get Ruby to sleep. Ruby had been in rare form lately and had been driving Lorelai crazy.

"Ruby if I have to come back into this room it is not going to be good." Lorelai threatened as she closed her daughters' bedroom door. She sighed heavily as she joined Luke on the couch.

"That didn't sound good."

She nestled into his arms. "I don't know what has gotten into that little girl. She has never been like this before. Other than her having to sleep in my bed, she has always been pretty easy."

"I'm sure it is just a phase."

"I'm tired of this phase." Lorelai told him. "I liked her better when she was six." She admitted. Ruby's birthday had been in February. Ruby's only request was to have a swimming party for her birthday. So instead of having a big party on her actual birthday, they had dinner with Emily and Richard and then another one with Luke, Mia, Sookie, and Jackson. Ruby was pretty smart if Lorelai said so herself. She was basically getting three parties. They had decided she could have a swimming party at the Inn at the end during the summer, and Ruby had been ecstatic. "Besides she isn't just being a terror at night. She has had such a bad attitude lately." Lorelai was beside herself. She couldn't help but feel responsible. "She has turned into a real life monster." Lorelai exclaimed.

Luke shook his head. "Just a phase." He repeated.

"You keep saying that, but I don't think kids go through phases at seven. That's supposed to be an easy age. And the sad thing is, the kid has only been seven for a few weeks. At this pace, I'm terrified of eight." Lorelai sighed.

Luke wrapped his arms around her tighter.

"I've heard of terrible twos." Lorelai continued. "But I've never heard about the sadistic sevens."

"That's not a thing."

"It seems to be in this house. Maybe I've ruined her."

Luke smiled and ran his fingers through her hair. "You haven't ruined her."

"When did you become Mr. Optimism?" Lorelai lifted her head to look at him. "Huh? Because I don't see this getting better. You know what she told me earlier?"

Luke shrugged. "She loves you very much?" He knew that wasn't it.

"That she gets her cuteness from her daddy."

"What? Why?" Luke chuckled.

"It isn't funny."

"I didn't mean to laugh."

"She said I was being mean because I was making her go to bed. I'm the mean mommy. Things like that make me really mad at Christopher."

"You can be mad at Christopher all you want, but I don't think it helps the situation."

Luke rubbed her shoulders. "You are being all positive, and it is kind of freaking me out."

Luke laughed. "I'm just trying to help."

"You are right. He's not here. I am. It is my job to make sure they don't turn into bank robbers." Lorelai looked at him. "Don't say it. I know. She isn't going to turn into a bank robber."

"I mean maybe." Luke joked.

"Thanks." Lorelai glared at him. "I think I'm just stressed out about my meeting with her teacher tomorrow. I've never been this nervous, and trust me, I've had plenty of parent-teacher meetings. I mean for most of them, I was the student, but I was never this nervous. I've got butterflies in my stomach. I'm sure they are going to tell me that I'm a bad mother."

"What did her teacher say?"

"We had to meet to discuss Ruby's behavior. She hasn't been very nice lately." Lorelai shrugged. "But that's no surprise with how she has been acting at home. Ms. Wallace thinks we can get her behavior under control if we work together."

"Why do you think she has been acting out? She is usually so sweet." Luke thought. He had always been impressed with how kind Ruby had always been.

"Well she has always been a little sassy, but that she gets honestly." She said as she pointed to herself.

"Do you think it is me?" Luke repositioned himself on the couch. Lorelai was no longer leaning against him.

"No." She said quickly. "She loves you."

"They say kids can act out due to change in the household." Luke didn't know much about kids, but he did know that.

"I'm positive." She was now the one rubbing his shoulders. "It isn't you."

Luke sighed.

"Luke. You aren't supposed to be stressed out. I'm the one having a manic episode."

"Sorry. Continue."

Lorelai smiled. "I don't think I have done her any favors by letting her get away with the small things. She's just so cute. I can't stand to punish her. She looks at me with those big eyes and that pouty face."

"Start closing your eyes." He chuckled.

"Luke, this isn't funny."

"Come on, Lorelai. You don't want me to be stressed but you don't want me to be funny. Please tell me what you want me to be." He gave her a look.

"I just need you to listen to me vent, even if you think I'm crazy."

"Okay. I can do that."

"You think I'm crazy?"

Luke was slowly learning that he always needed to be quick on his feet when it came to Lorelai Gilmore. "Only on Tuesdays." He joked.

"As long as you listen to me vent, I don't care." She told him.

"I'll listen to you vent but I don't have to agree with you."

"That's part of it." She glared with a smile.

He shook his head. "I'm never going to agree that this is your fault. You are a damn good mother. You have got to stop doubting yourself. Ruby will be fine."

"I understand what you are saying. I'm just worried about her."

"We can worry together." He took her back into his arms. "I can go with you tomorrow if you want." He offered. She could say no. His feelings wouldn't be hurt either way.

She was touched that he offered. "That's so sweet, but I should probably put on my big girl panties and do this myself."

"I will have a big cup of hot coffee waiting for you."

"A man after my own heart."

"Come here." He pulled her in closer so that he could massage her shoulders.

"You are too good to me."

"It is easy to be good to you Lorelai Gilmore." He leaned down and began placing sweet, gentle kisses on her neck. It felt nice.

"Rory it is fine."

They heard Ryan say as the front door opened. Luke dropped his head. Interrupted again. Their timing had never been good.

"I think we should…"

"Stop." Ryan cut her off. "We aren't changing anything else. Stop being a perfectionist."

"Maybe you should be more of a perfectionist."

Lorelai rolled her eyes as she listened to the bickering teenagers. She decided to break it up. As much as she didn't want to, she pulled herself off of the couch. "Hey you two." She greeted them.

They both looked at her. "Hey mom." Rory said first.

"Hey." Ryan added.

"Come on in. Stay awhile." She motioned for them to go into the living room. "Did you two finish your project?"

"Yes." Ryan answered quickly.

"No." Rory shot back.

Lorelai looked at Luke.

"Mom tell her to stop worrying so much." Ryan looked at his mother. "She is about to drive me crazy. I should have never picked you as my partner."

"You picked me because you thought I would do all the work."

"I was wrong."

"See. I knew that is why you picked me. That stuff you said about twins sticking together was such bull."

"Hey okay you two." Lorelai stood in-between the two. "That's enough. No more school talk."

Rory glared at Ryan and he glared back at her.

"The joys of parenting." Lorelai sighed. "I want you to both go get ready for bed. I can't take much more bickering from anyone."

"Ruby still giving you fits?" Rory asked.

Lorelai nodded.

"She gets it from Ryan." Rory said smartly.

"I beg to differ."

"Okay. Enough." Lorelai repeated. "Bed."

"Fine." Ryan grumbled. "Luke, Jess said he would meet you at home."

"Okay. Thanks buddy."

"Good night." Lorelai gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Night." Ryan gave Rory one more look before walking upstairs.

"Good night guys." Rory turned to walk to her room.

"Wait." Lorelai remembered. "I put some clothes upstairs for you. I figured you could sleep with me tonight."

"Mom." Rory groaned. "That's the third time in a week. That's my room too."

"I know. But I don't want her to wake up. You are kind of loud, and I'll never get her back to sleep."

"I'm not loud."

"You are a little loud."

Rory rolled her eyes.

"It is not nice to roll your eyes at your mother." Lorelai quipped.

"We need another bedroom." Rory said as she made her way upstairs. "I'm too old to be sleeping with my mommy."

"But I love you so much." Lorelai smiled as she turned back to Luke. "Sure you are okay dating a woman with what feels like a thousand kids?"

Luke smiled as he stood up to be next to her. "I love your kids. They are some of the best I've ever met." He kissed her forehead. "I better go make sure my kid doesn't burn down the diner. He likes to have snack before bed."

"Is he five?" Lorelai laughed.

"He claims he is growing boy. I think he just does it to drive me crazy."

"That's every child's motivation." She started walking him towards the door. She didn't want him to leave, but she knew he had to go. "Besides the screaming kid, I had a lot of fun spending time with you."

"Come to the diner after your meeting. I want to hear all about it."

"First place I'll go." She gave him a kiss. "Good night, Luke."

"Good night, Lorelai."

They shared one last kiss before Luke headed to his truck. He couldn't believe how quickly he had fallen for Lorelai Gilmore.

Lorelai closed the door with a big smile on her face.

"Mommy." She heard Ruby call out for her.

Lorelai grimaced. Would it ever get any easier?

* * *

The next morning, Lorelai walked into the kitchen at the Inn. "I already have it ready for you." Sookie said as she handed Lorelai her morning cup of coffee.

"Oh you are the best friend a girl could ever have." Lorelai took a sip of her coffee. "This is exactly what I needed. I didn't sleep very well last night."

"Because you and Luke were you know." Sookie made hand gestures with the biggest smile on her face.

Lorelai shook her head and rolled her eyes. "Sookie. Get your head out of the gutter. I was worried about Ruby."

"Oh that's right. You have your parent-teacher meeting today."

"I'm worried about her."

"Ruby is going to be fine." Sookie reassured her. "You have to stop worrying so much."

"I can't help it, Sookie. She hasn't been on her best behavior lately."

"Oh I know."

"What do you mean?"

"Well." Sookie made a face.

"Sookie." Lorelai followed her around the island.

"She and Davey poured out all of his paints and finger painted the wall the last time she was at the house."

Lorelai's mouth opened. That didn't sound like anything Ruby would ever do. "Sook. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I got it all cleaned up, and Ruby told me you would be upset with me for not keeping a better eye on her." Sookie told her. Lorelai was shaking her head. "Oh see. I didn't want you to make that face."

"She manipulated you."

"I know that now."

Lorelai sighed. "I don't know what I'm going to do with her."

"It's a phase."

"You and Luke." Lorelai pointed. Sookie looked confused. "He said the same thing."

"I always said he was a smart man." Sookie laughed. "Come on, Lorelai. You know everything will be okay. She will grow out of it."

"I hope you are right." Lorelai felt defeated.

"I am right, and I am also right about you and Luke."

"What about me and Luke?" Lorelai asked not sure where this conversation was headed.

"Well…Jackson and I were talking."

"Yes."

"About you and Luke." Sookie eased into it.

"Why were you and Jackson talking about me and Luke?"

"Because you are our best friends, and the most interesting people we know."

"Okay. I've got to get back to work." Lorelai walked out of the kitchen and of course Sookie followed her.

"Lorelai. Just hear me out."

Lorelai turned to face her. "Yes."

"It is time."

"Time?"

"Time for you and Luke to you know." Sookie motioned.

"Sookie."

"You should drop the kids off my house one night and seduce that man."

"Oh God." Michel said as he past the two women. "You two disgust me. Talking about seduction in an open place of business. You should be ashamed." He gave them both a look before walking away.

"Now look what you have done. You've got Michel all stirred up."

"That man stays stirred up." Sookie reminded her. "You know that I am right. You know that you want too."

"Of course I want too." She responded as she walked towards the front desk. "But I have a lot on my mind. It will happen when it happens."

"I think you are going to need improvise. You know the universe seems to be against the two of you. It took you over a month and several tries to actually have a first date. If you let the universe take its course, you might be in a retirement home when it finally happens."

Lorelai thought about it. "That's not going to happen."

"I know you are a mom, but you are woman too."

"Yes. You've given me this spill time and time again."

"I hope you finally get it. You've got to put yourself first sometimes. You just have too."

"I will. After I deal with Ruby."

"And then Ryan will do something and then Rory and then your parents will get in the way. Then the cycle will repeat. You and Luke have a good thing."

"I know that."

"And you deserve some time alone just the two of you."

Lorelai nodded. She agreed.

"I will take the kids for you this weekend."

"I'll think about it."

"That's all I ask." Sookie smiled. "Lorelai and Luke. Lorelai and Luke. Lorelai and Luke." She sang all the way back to the kitchen. Lorelai smiled. Sookie was always looking out for her. And she was right. She and Luke did need to have some alone time. She hoped both them were ready to take the next step.

* * *

Jackson walked into the diner and spotted Luke clearing a table. "Hey Luke."

Luke looked up from the table. "Hey Jackson. Sit anywhere. I'll be right with you."

"Oh okay." Jackson looked around and sat at the counter.

After a few minutes, Luke walked behind the counter. "Alright. What can I get you?"

"A second of your time."

"Uh okay." Luke had a feeling he was up to something. "What's up?"

"Sookie and I were talking."

"Do you want to go on another double date? Lorelai and I had a pretty good time last time." Luke interrupted. They had gone on a double date about two weeks earlier. It had actually been better than Luke thought it would be.

"No." Jackson shook his head. "I mean we had a great time, but that's not what we were talking about."

"Okay." Luke sat his rag on the counter. "What's going on?"

Jackson thought for a moment. He never knew how Luke would take his suggestions. "Well we think…We were discussing you and Lorelai…and we…Well…"

"Jackson, I do have a business to run." He held out his hands.

"We think you should take Lorelai away this weekend."

"That's none of your business." He said grumpily.

"The two of you are our best friends. We have to look out for you."

"We are fine." Luke glared at him.

"Sookie thinks."

"Jackson," Luke interrupted him again. "This is my relationship. This is Lorelai's relationship. This is not your relationship. This is not Sookie's relationship. I would appreciate it if you two would stay out of it. Stop meddling."

"It is not meddling."

"What the hell would you call it?" Luke asked.

"Friendly interference." Jackson suggested.

"You don't have to worry about us." Luke told him.

"You should take her to the cabin. I know she isn't outdoorsy but the cabin has running water and a bed. That's all you need."

Luke thought about it. It actually didn't sound like a bad idea.

"I don't know if Lorelai would be able to get away."

"We will keep an eye on the kids." Jackson offered.

"If I say I will think about it, will you get out of my diner?" Luke could only hope.

"Sure. I'll take that."

"Okay. I'll think about it."

"Okay." He smiled as if he had won. "Great. My job here is done."

"You and Sookie need to get a life that is not mine."

"But yours is so much more interesting than ours." Jackson said as he walked out of the diner.

Luke shook his head. Jackson did have a point. He was ready for some alone time with Lorelai. He hoped that is what she wanted too.

* * *

Ryan waited patiently outside of the guidance counselor's office for Jess. Their English teacher had asked Jess to visit the counselor. Ryan was curious as to what they were talking about. Jess finally emerged from the office. "Hey man. How did it go?"

"Fine." Jess answered simply.

"What did she want?" Ryan wanted to know.

"Just to talk." Jess wasn't giving him anything.

"About what? What are those?" He pointed to the things in Jess' hands.

"Pamphlets."

"For?" Ryan felt like he was getting nowhere with him.

"Other schools."

"Military schools?"

Jess shook his head. "Worse. Private schools."

"What?"

"She wants me to talk to my Uncle Luke about changing schools next year."

"They are kicking you out?"

"No." Jess said. "But they think I'm bored. I need more of a challenge."

"Have they looked at your grades?"

"Yep." He shrugged. "They think my grades would be better if I felt challenged."

"Are you going to talk to Luke about it?"

"No. I'm not going to private school." He threw the pamphlets away. "I hate going to this school."

"Rory is going."

"I'm not Rory. I don't belong in a private school. We are not telling anyone about this."

"Our little secret." Ryan told him. He wouldn't say anything.

"Hey you." Grace found him. He smiled, and she gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Hey."

"What are you two up too?"

"Nothing." Jess answered.

"We are just walking to our lockers."

"I'm glad I ran into you. I was hoping we could hangout after school."

"Oh." He made a face. "I can't."

"Why not?" Grace asked.

"I'm going to the music store with Lane." Ryan said like it was no big deal.

Jess made a face.

"Oh."

"We can hangout after." He told her still not seeing the big deal.

"Oh. Okay." Grace said sadly. Her jealous bone sneaking up on her. "I better get to class."

"The bell hasn't rang. I can walk you to class."

"That's okay. I'll see you later." She gave him another kiss on the cheek.

"Okay." Ryan shook his head.

"Uh oh."

"What?" Ryan looked at him.

"She's mad."

"No she isn't."

"Yes she is." Jess shook his head. "She is jealous."

"It's just Lane."

"You kissed Lane." Jess reminded him.

"So. We are just friends."

"Okay." Jess smiled at him.

"It's true. Grace has nothing to worry about."

"You should probably tell her that." Jess told him as they walked to class.

* * *

"That's the bell." Dean told Rory as he closed her locker door.

"Let me grab one more book."

"Don't you have class?"

"Yes, but sometimes Ms. Larson gets off on a tangent, and I like to read."

"I know you like to read. It's really cute."

Rory smiled.

"Hey Rory." Lane joined them at Rory's locker. "Want to walk to class?"

"Sure."

"I'll see you after." Dean gave her a hug. "See you Lane."

"What's wrong?" Lane could tell by the look on her face.

"Is it weird that he hasn't kissed me?" Rory asked as they walked to their classroom.

"No."

"You and Ryan kissed, and you weren't even dating. And I don't even know that he is my boyfriend. I almost slipped up the other day. I almost called him my boyfriend, but then I caught myself and wondered if it would weird him out if I called him that. Maybe he hates labels."

"Rory. You are overreacting."

"I'm not." Rory sighed.

"I think you should kiss him. That's kind of what happened with Ryan."

"I'm too nervous."

"Sometimes you just have to go after what you want unless you are me, and then you have to wait until your mama thinks it is best."

Rory smiled nervously. "Maybe he doesn't like me."

"Rory."

"It's been a whole month."

"Just go for it." Lane told her. "You know I live vicariously through you."

"Noted." Rory said as they walked into class.

* * *

Sometime after lunch, Lorelai walked into the diner. Luke walked out of the back and smiled, but she didn't smile back. She looked tired and stressed out. He remembered that she had a meeting at Ruby's school. "Hey you don't look so good."

"Oh thanks. You just go ahead and twist the knife."

"I'm guessing the meeting didn't go well."

"It was terrible."

Luke was relieved that he wasn't busy, so that he could give her his full attention. "What has Ruby been doing at school?"

"What hasn't she done?" Lorelai sighed.

"It can't be that bad."

"Oh it can be, and it is. Her teacher didn't want to call me. She thought they could handle her change in attitude, but she said things just kept getting worse. So they were hoping when they sent the note home for me to sign that it would help."

"What note?" Luke didn't remember her mentioning a note.

"Exactly. Ruby never gave me the note."

"Oh wow."

Lorelai nodded. "I know. She told her teacher that I didn't want to sign it. That's why she called me."

"What is she doing in class?"

"She won't stop talking in class." Lorelai paused. "I can totally relate. I've been there. Done that."

Luke smiled. He knew all too well how much Lorelai could talk.

"She's bossy." She continued. "Again, she gets that honestly. But she is being manipulative. Last week she told her teacher that she couldn't get mad at her because it would make me sad, and she didn't think her teacher would want to make me sad. She did the same think to Sookie. She also flashes a smile and bats her eyelashes. Ruby actually told her teacher that she was way too cute to be punished. A girl after my own heart." Lorelai couldn't help but smile. "But she can't do that."

"Does she have any idea why she is behaving this way?" Luke asked. He hoped they had gotten to the bottom of it all.

Lorelai sighed. "She suggested that it has to do with Christopher."

Luke made a face. "You don't believe that." He could tell by the look on her face.

"No. Christopher has never been a big part of Ruby's life. The divorce was hard on Ryan, but I don't think Ruby noticed any difference. Except for when we moved."

"You think it has to do with the move?" Luke didn't think that could be it.

"That was the next thing she suggested. She asked a ton of questions, and I didn't think about it until I was on my way here. I know what is going on, and it kills me." She cringed.

"What is it?"

"My mother." She cringed again. "This is all because of my mother."

"Huh?" He was even more confused. "Your mother? What does she have to do with this?"

"She is the big change in Ruby's life. They spent a lot of time together when we lived in Hartford. I never thought about how the move would affect Ruby. She is so young, you know. I thought about Rory and Ryan. I knew it would be an adjustment for the two of them."

"You really think that it has to do with your mother?"

Lorelai nodded. "Yes. Ruby misses her. Which never crossed my mind before."

"What did the teacher say? What does she think we need to do?"

"We?" Lorelai questioned. She couldn't believe how much Luke had stepped up, and they had only been together for a few months.

Luke nodded as he found the top of her hand. "Yes. I told you we are in this together."

"I like the sound of that. It is really nice to hear." Lorelai smiled. "She thinks that we have to be consistent. Even if she is cute, we can't let her get away with anything. She has to know that there are consequences."

"I will do whatever I can to help. No more chocolate milkshakes after school until she gets a better report."

"I agree." Lorelai gave him a look. She was nervous. "This isn't going to be easy because she is pretty cute."

"We will figure it out." He looked at her. "Do you want some coffee?"

"No. I've got to go pick Ruby up." She leaned across the counter and gave him a kiss. "Thanks for listening to me vent."

"Anytime."

"You are too good to me." She said as she walked out of the diner. She took a breath. She was not ready to have the conversation she needed to have with Ruby. It was never fun to punish any of her children, and it never got any easier.

* * *

 **Alright Let me know what you thought!**


	51. Sweet Girl

**Thanks so much for all the reviews! Sorry this took a little longer to post. I got a little behind. I hope you all enjoy.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 51: Sweet Girl**

Lorelai and Ruby walk into their house. "Mommy." Ruby said as she sat her backpack next to the stairs. "Why didn't we go to Luke's today?"

Lorelai smirked. She had been waiting for that question the whole way home. "Because you and I need to have a little chat." Lorelai told her as she held out her hand and led Ruby to the couch.

"Why?" Ruby asked curiously.

Lorelai took a breath. She wasn't ready for this conversation. "I talked to your teacher today."

"Ms. Wallace?" Ruby asked innocently.

Lorelai nodded. She had a feeling the little girl was aware of all the things that she had been doing lately. "Yes." Lorelai nodded. "Do you know why?"

Ruby shook her head.

"I think you do."

"Nope."

"Ruby," Lorelai gave her a stern look. "Did your teacher give you a note to give to me a few days ago?"

Ruby shrugged. "I don't know."

"Ruby." Lorelai was disappointed. Ruby was way too young to lie to her. "Think about it before you lie to me."

Ruby stared at her mommy. She thought it was best to remain silent. Her mommy told her not to lie.

"Ruby. Ms. Wallace told me that she gave you a note about your behavior. It is not nice to lie, Ruby. You know better."

"Mommy."

"Ruby I need you to be honest with me." Lorelai patted Ruby's knee.

"Okay."

"So." Lorelai motioned for her to speak. "Why didn't you give me the note?"

"I didn't want you to be sad." She said with the cutest pouty face Lorelai had ever seen.

Lorelai took a breath and looked away from her little girl for a moment. She could do this. She could be strong. "Ruby you know that isn't true. You were afraid that you were going to get in trouble."

Ruby didn't say anything. She kept her pouty face.

"That face of yours isn't going to work this time." Lorelai pointed. "I'm very disappointed in how you have been behaving not only at school but at home and at Sookie's as well."

Ruby still didn't say anything.

"Ruby, you can't hide things from me. That's not how it works in this house."

"Ryan and Rory hide things from you."

Lorelai gave her a look. She really couldn't believe how manipulative her seven year old daughter was being. "Well that doesn't mean that they should or that you can. You are supposed to be my sweet girl."

"I am your sweet girl."

"You haven't been acting like it lately." Lorelai looked at her daughter. "Can you tell me why you have been acting this way?"

Ruby didn't say anything.

"Ruby."

"Because I'm cute." Ruby smiled with a shrug.

Lorelai couldn't believe that was her answer. "Oh."

"You didn't get mad at me when I lied to Sookie." Ruby told her. "You thought I was cute."

Lorelai thought about it. She had sent her mixed signals. She shouldn't have let her get away with it. She had been letting her get away with things for a while now, and that had to stop.

"I should have." Lorelai told her. "You shouldn't have lied to Sookie, and you shouldn't have covered for your brother."

Ruby frowned. "Can I go play?" She stood up.

"No." Lorelai made her sit back down. "We are not done talking about this."

Ruby crossed her arms and pouted.

"I'm sorry if I made you think that you could get away with things because you are cute, but you can't." Lorelai told her. "That's not how it works."

"But mommy."

"No. Ruby. We are going to talk about the rules." Lorelai told her, and she hoped that Ruby understood. "You have to stop talking while your teacher is talking. You have to listen to her and all other adults. No talking back. You will go to bed on time without whining. You will give me every note from your teacher." Lorelai talked slowly, emphasizing each sentence.

"Okay." Ruby said quietly.

"Ruby it is important that you learn that your behavior has consequences."

"I heard you tell Ryan that before."

"It applies to you too." Lorelai patted her knee again. "It applies to all people."

"So you are going to give me a consequence for getting in trouble at school?" Ruby asked. She already knew the answer.

Lorelai nodded. "First, do you understand that how you have been acting is wrong?"

Ruby nodded. "I know. I should be nice to my teacher."

"Yes. You should be nice to everyone."

Ruby bit the bottom of her lip. She knew she was in trouble. She had never really been in trouble before. However, she had witnessed Ryan getting into trouble many times before.

"Do you understand that you can't hide things from me?"

She nodded again. She did understand.

Lorelai had thought long and hard about what she was going to do. "You can't watch TV for the next three days."

"Mommy. That's not fair. That's way too long."

Lorelai shook her head. She wasn't sure it was long enough, but Ruby was only seven. "No Ruby. It isn't. I don't ever want to be called in to talk to your teacher unless it is good news."

Ruby pouted.

"I talked to Ms. Wallace. She is going to send me an email about your behavior every day. If you get a bad report you won't be able to watch TV that night and no chocolate milkshakes after school until you start behaving better."

"Mommy." Ruby whined.

"Ruby I love you very much, and I don't want to punish you. That's my least favorite part about being a mom, but I want you to be my sweet girl."

Ruby was upset. "Can I go to my room?"

Lorelai thought about it. "Go ahead."

The little girl stood up.

"And Ruby, I want you to apologize to Ms. Wallace tomorrow."

"Okay." Ruby said sadly as she made her way to her room. She wasn't very happy with her mommy.

Lorelai had a little tear in her eye. She really did hate that part of being a mom. She hoped that she had handled the situation in the right way, and she really hoped Ruby's behavior would improve sooner rather than later.

* * *

Lane and Ryan were flipping through CDs at the music store. Lane felt like she was in heaven. She had been ecstatic when the store had opened. She felt like it was meant to be.

"Where does your mom think you are?" Ryan asked. He knew Mrs. Kim would lock Lane away if she knew where she really was.

"At the library studying."

Ryan nodded. "With me?" He wondered.

"Oh no. Rory. Always Rory. Never you." Lane told him quickly. "She would freak out if she knew I was with you or any boy for that matter."

"Rory is always a good cover. Parents love her."

"Yes well my mom doesn't trust anyone, but I figured it was better to say I was with a girl instead of a boy. She really does think all boys are bad news."

"She's probably right." Ryan laughed.

"I don't think so." Lane shook her head. "You aren't so bad. Besides my mama has nothing to worry about with you. The two of us are just friends."

"Yes. Because we both have great taste in music."

"That's right and when I start my band you are going to be the manager."

"Really?" Ryan gave her a pointed look. "What if I wanted to be in the band?"

"You want to be in the band? I didn't know you could play anything."

"I can play the piano. My grandmother made my mom put me in lessons."

"I didn't know that about you." Lane smiled.

"I also know how to play the guitar." He admitted. He didn't tell that to a lot of people. "I haven't played in a while, but once you learn it is easy to pick it back up."

"That is so cool. You are a real live musician." Lane giggled, excitedly. "Now we will be able to have a two man band one day."

"A duo?" He laughed.

Lane nodded.

"What's your instrument?" Ryan asked.

"Well." Lane gave him a look. "I think I want to play the drums."

"Have you ever played the drums?" Ryan asked, already knowing the answer.

"When you have a passion for music you can play any instrument."

"Uh well. I don't know about that." Ryan said.

Lane nodded. "I know I can do it. The music runs through my veins."

"Cool. One day you and I will be in a band together."

"Yay." Lane hugged him. "One step closer to my dream."

Ryan smiled as he pulled away from her embrace. "We will have to find more people to join us."

"Why?" Lane wondered. "There are some pretty famous duos out there."

Ryan didn't know how to say it.

"What is it?"

"Grace wouldn't like it."

"Why not?" She was confused. "Grace and I are friends."

"I know."

"Then what's the deal?"

Ryan sighed. "Jess thinks she is jealous of us."

"Of us? Me and you?" She pointed between the two of them. "Why?"

"We kissed."

Lane shrugged. "So what? We agreed to be friends."

"I know that. You know that. But Jess doesn't think Grace knows that."

Lane shook her head. "I don't think she is jealous. That's just silly."

"Hey guys."

They turned around to see Grace standing in front of them with a big smile on her face.

"I thought I would join you."

Lane looked at Ryan. "I take that back." She mumbled. Ryan nodded. He knew he needed to talk to Grace. He and Lane were just friends, but Grace obviously didn't know it.

* * *

Jess was at the diner working. They weren't too busy. That's how Jess liked it. He had just refilled the coffee cups at the college table, and he couldn't help listening to their conversation.

"It's a great place to go, man." One of the guys said.

"Yeah. Trey is right, bro. They have a great open mic night."

"Oh and we haven't even told you about the babes. They are pretty hot."

"Where is it?" The third guy asked.

"Right outside of town. It's called the Outsiders." Trey told him.

"I thought you had to be older to get into that place."

"They don't ID. It is a great place to chill."

"We will have to check it out."

Jess nodded. He thought it might be a great place for him and Ryan to check out. He needed a place to chill.

* * *

"Thanks for walking me home." Rory told Dean as they made it to her mailbox. "Do you want to come in?"

"I can't." Dean told her.

Rory frowned.

"It's just that I told my mom I would be home soon."

"Oh okay. Maybe next time." Rory was disappointed.

"Yeah. I'll tell my mom I'm coming over here tomorrow."

"Okay. That sounds good." She said as she opened the mailbox and grabbed the mail.

"Rory." Dean wanted to kiss her.

"This letter is from Chilton." Rory said nervously.

"Really? Open it?" Dean encouraged her.

"I can't."

"Yes you can. It looks like a pretty thick envelope." Dean thought.

Rory took a breath. She was more nervous than she thought she would be. That was probably because she didn't know what she wanted the letter to say. She had always wanted to go to Chilton, but now things were different. She had great friends, and she really cared about Dean. She didn't know what Chilton would do to her relationship with Dean.

"I'm right here. Just do it."

Rory opened the letter and began to read. She was quiet for a minute.

"So?" Dean asked, becoming nervous for her.

"I got in." Rory said quietly.

"That's awesome, Rory." Dean was happy for her.

"Yeah."

"Aren't you excited?" Her reaction wasn't what he was expecting.

"I'm just processing." Rory told him truthfully.

"This is good news. Rory, you are going to do great at Chilton, and we will hangout after school and on the weekends."

"I know."

"Are you going to tell your mom?"

Rory sighed. "I will. I just need some time to think about it."

"Rory you have to go to Chilton."

"I know. Let's just keep it between us for now."

"Your secret is safe with me." He still wanted to kiss her, but he felt like the moment was gone. "I should go."

"Okay. See you tomorrow." Rory gave him a hug. She looked down at the acceptance letter and stuck it in her backpack. She would tell her mom later.

She walked into the house.

"Which kid is here? Or am I lucky to have both of you?"

She heard Lorelai's voice from the living room and walked in to join her. "Just me."

Lorelai smiled when she saw Rory. "That's what I figured. Ryan is at the music store."

"Oh yeah with Lane." Rory remembered.

Lorelai patted the seat beside her, and Rory joined her on the couch. "So how was your day?"

"It was good." Rory felt bad for not telling her mom about Chilton. "You don't look so good." Rory noticed. "How did your meeting go?"

"Ruby's teacher is great. However, Ruby on the other hand has turned into a manipulative little monster." Lorelai told her daughter dramatically.

"Oh don't call her a monster. She's fine. It is probably just a…"

"Don't." Lorelai interrupted her. "Don't you dare say it was a phase or I am going to scream."

"I wasn't going to say that."

"What were you going to say? It is probably just a…" Lorelai motioned for Rory to finish her sentence.

"Matter of time before she changes her attitude and gets better." Rory stumbled over her words and laughed.

"You are a quick thinker. I like that about you."

"I'm not sure where I get it from." Rory joked.

Lorelai chuckled.

"So what's the plan with Ruby?" Rory wondered.

"Consistency. She has to know that her actions have consequences."

"But the face." Rory thought. Her little sister had the cutest face in the world.

"Luke suggested we close our eyes."

"Brilliant man that guy."

"Because of her behavior, she can't watch TV for three days." Lorelai informed her daughter. They all had to be on the same page.

"Oh mom. That sucks. I hate that one."

"It's not your punishment." Lorelai reminded her.

"It kind of is." Rory told her. "We won't be able to watch TV while she is awake."

"I couldn't think of another punishment." Lorelai defended herself. "We love TV in this house."

"Yes I'm aware."

"When we watch TV she will just have to go to her room."

"And cry?" Rory noted.

"Rory." Lorelai groaned. "You are killing me here."

"Sorry. No TV. Good punishment." Rory gave her mom a pat on the back.

"Thank you. I really needed your approval."

"I knew it."

They were both quiet for a few minutes.

"So mom." Rory spoke up. "Can I ask you something?"

"Anything."

"Should I be worried that Dean hasn't kissed me?" Rory asked. She was still nervous about it, and she knew her mom was the perfect person to ask.

"Um." Lorelai shifted nervously.

"You said I could talk to you about anything."

"And you can."

"Do you think that he doesn't really like me?" Rory asked her.

"Oh no hon. That boy adores you." Lorelai reassured her daughter. "You have nothing to worry about."

"Then why hasn't he kissed me?"

"It probably has nothing to do with you."

"Then what?" Rory asked.

Lorelai smiled at her nervous little girl. "He is fifteen years old, and he is probably nervous."

"I'm nervous too." Rory admitted.

"Awe sweetie." Lorelai wrapped her arms around her daughter. "The two of you will kiss." Lorelai wasn't sure how she felt about that. Both of her teenagers were kissing. She needed time to slow down. "You just have to let it happen naturally."

"I really, really like him." Rory told her mother as she rested her head on Lorelai's shoulder.

"Really. Really. That's a pretty big deal." Lorelai smiled. "You know hon, you could always make the first move." She paused. "That's how it happened with your dad and me."

Rory looked at her mom. She didn't talk much about their dad these days. "You kissed him first?"

Lorelai nodded, remembering the moment. "We had known each other forever. So it was a little different, but he said that he was glad that I had taken the first step."

"But what if," Rory started.

"Honey you cannot live in the what ifs." Lorelai told her. "I have seen the way Dean looks at you. He cares about you. Don't worry about something that I know is going to happen soon enough." She kissed her daughter's forehead. "Don't be in a rush to grow up. Trust me."

"You are only saying that because you want me to stay young forever."

Lorelai nodded. "Duh." She laughed. "That is my master plan."

"Thanks." Rory said sincerely. "You always know exactly what to say to make me feel better." Rory knew how lucky she was to have her mom. "And thanks for being so cool with Dean."

"I like him even better now that I know he hasn't kissed you." Lorelai smiled.

"Mom." Rory gave her a look.

"It is true. He got like twenty brownie points. He'll get even more if he waits until your thirty."

"I love you mom." Rory gave her a big hug.

"I love you, my Rory."

Rory stood up. "I should go study."

"Okay. I'll order some takeout."

"Awesome. And mom, don't worry about Ruby. She will be okay."

"That's what they keep telling me." Lorelai wasn't so sure about that.

Rory walked into her bedroom. Ruby was sitting on the bed holding her teddy bear. "Hey Ruby." Rory dropped her bag and sat next to her little sister.

"Go away." Ruby said sadly.

"I can't. This is my room." Rory reminded her.

"I don't like mommy." Ruby told her.

"Oh Ruby. That's not true."

"She is so mean."

"Mommy isn't mean. She is the best."

Ruby glared at her.

"You are just upset because you got in trouble."

Ruby pouted.

"You are a sweet girl Ruby. We just want to make sure that you don't get into any more trouble."

"You are in on this." Ruby looked at her.

"Ruby."

Ruby rolled over on her side. "I don't want to talk to you."

Rory sighed. She was not a fan of this Ruby.

* * *

After the music store, Ryan and Grace walked Lane home. The rest of their time at the music store had been super awkward. Lane and Ryan could tell that Grace was not interested in the same music as they were.

"So Grace." Ryan started.

"I know what you are going to say." Grace interrupted him. "I'm sorry I crashed your music store date with Lane."

"It wasn't a date." Ryan corrected her. "Lane and I are just friends. I don't know what I need to do to convince you of that."

"I'm sorry. I just like you so much, and Lane is so great. I'm afraid you are going to realize that and choose her."

Ryan shook his head. "That's not going to happen. I like you Grace. Lane and I are just friends." He told her again. "I'm not going to stop being her friend, and I shouldn't have too."

"I know." Grace felt bad about it. "I really am sorry."

"I like you, Grace." He leaned in and kissed her. "That's all that matters."

"I know. I promise I won't crash your music time again." This time she kissed him.

Ryan was glad that they got that all cleared up. Grace had nothing to worry about. He was happy being friends with Lane.

* * *

Lorelai opened the front door with a smile. Luke was standing in front of her holding bags of food. "What are you doing here?"

"I thought you could use some food."

"Luke." She took the bags from him. "It is like you know how to read my mind."

They walked into the kitchen. "How did things go with Ruby?"

"She's mad at me." Lorelai said sadly. She pointed to the bedroom door. "She is in their sulking."

"Lorelai."

"I know. She will get over it." Lorelai finished his sentence. "This is just the beginning. I have a feeling Ruby is going to be my little rebel."

"I thought that was Ryan."

"I think Ruby is going to have him beat."

"Well I'll be here for you." Luke told her.

"I'm so lucky." Lorelai hugged him. "So are you going to stay and eat with us?"

"I've got to get back to the diner, but I can come back later."

"I'd like that." She followed him back to the door.

"So." Luke stopped. "I was thinking about something. You can say no."

"Okay. What's up?"

"I talked to Jackson, and he gave me this idea."

"You talked to Jackson about us?"

"Yes. It all started because he and Sookie were talking about us."

"I know where this is going."

"You do?" Luke gave her a look.

Lorelai nodded. "Sookie and I had the same conversation."

"Oh."

"She thinks we should have some alone time."

"Yes so I heard from Jackson."

"Luke I don't…"

"I agree with them."

"You do?"

"You don't?" He was worried.

"No. I mean yes. I mean I think we need alone time." Lorelai stumbled over her words. "I agree with them and you."

Luke smiled. "I have a cabin outside of town."

"Camping?"

"It has a bed and running water."

"That's all we need." She kissed him.

"So that's a yes."

"Can I think about it? I want too, but Ruby."

"I understand."

"But I really want too, Luke."

He leaned in and kissed her. "That's all I wanted to hear."

Lorelai smiled. She needed to come up with a plan so that she and Luke could spend some time together. It was time for them. It was time for her.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought and if there is anything you would like to see next or more of!**


	52. Not Quick Enough

**As always you guys are the best. I'm sorry for the lack of updates. I got a little behind, but I am back on track. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and I hope that you are still interested in the story! I've got a lot left to go!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 52: Not Quick Enough**

Lorelai and the kids were at the diner for dinner. Lorelai still hadn't given Luke an answer about going to the cabin for the weekend, and the weekend was right around the corner. Lorelai wanted to go, but she wasn't sure about leaving the kids alone or even with Sookie. Ruby had been giving her the silent treatment, and she was way too young for that.

"Hey Ruby." Lorelai looked over at her daughter.

Ruby looked up at her mother but didn't say anything.

"Do you want to go get us some pie?" Lorelai asked her little girl. She thought giving her a task might be helpful.

Ruby sighed and got up from the table.

"That went well." Lorelai told Rory and Ryan.

"She is seriously freezing you out." Ryan laughed. Rory gave her brother a punch in the arm. "Hey." He scowled.

"You deserved that. This is not funny." She gave him a look. "She is only seven. Neither one of you were like this at seven. Eight maybe. But not seven." She looked over at her daughter who was sitting at the counter waiting for Luke to serve her.

"Hey Ruby." Luke greeted her. "What can I get you?"

"Mommy wants some pie." She said with a sigh.

"I'll bring four slices over." Luke told her.

"Okay." Ruby sighed heavily again.

Luke noticed how sad she looked. "Ruby."

"You don't have to finish the surprise for my mommy. I don't want it anymore." Ruby decided.

Luke shook his head. "You don't mean that Ruby."

"Yes I do." She nodded. "She is mean."

"She is not mean." Luke thought about it. "Come with me." He walked around the counter and led Ruby to one of the back storage rooms. Lorelai watched and decided not to follow them. She trusted that Luke knew what he was doing.

"Alright little Miss Ruby." He opened the door.

"Oh Luke." Ruby smiled for the first time in a few days. "You are almost finished with it." Ruby looked at the project Luke had been working on for her to give to her mom.

"I think your mom is going to love it."

"But she is being mean to me Luke."

Luke leaned down so that he was eye level with the little girl. "She isn't being mean. She is your mommy. It is her job to make sure that you don't get into trouble. She is just looking out for you. You don't see that now, but one day you will."

Ruby just frowned.

"She loves you very, very much." Luke knew that was true. Lorelai was the most loving, caring mother he had ever known. She reminded him so much of his own mother. Luke could remember getting mad at his mom from time to time. It happens, but his dad always told him to get over it and give his mother a hug because you only get one.

Ruby sighed. "I love her too." It was true, but she wanted to be mad at her mommy for a little while longer.

"I can trash the whole project. If that is what you want." Luke smiled. He could tell that probably wasn't what she wanted. "I can knock it all down?" He pointed to the project.

Ruby shook her head. "No." That wasn't what she wanted. She thought Luke was doing a very good job, and she knew her mommy was going to love it.

"Good. I really want to finish it for her." Luke gave Ruby a hug. He had never been good with kids before, but he felt like he was doing a pretty good job with Ruby. "Let's go get that pie."

"Can you give me a chocolate milkshake?" Ruby asked, knowing that she hadn't been able to get one after school since getting into trouble.

Luke smirked. "If you are good at school next week."

"Luuuke…That's a long time." Ruby pouted. "I won't tell my mommy if you don't."

"Sorry kiddo. No getting into trouble." Luke reminded her. "I'll have you the biggest milkshake next week if you don't get into any trouble at school or at home."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Okay." She would try her best, but it wasn't that easy being good. She really liked getting her own way.

Luke smiled. She really did have the cutest face. It was really hard to be stern with her. He had never had that problem with Jess.

* * *

Jess was at his own table studying. Ryan joined him. "Hey man." Ryan said as he sat down. "I didn't know we had any homework tonight."

"We don't."

"What are you doing?" Ryan wondered.

"Pretending. When my Uncle Luke thinks I have homework he doesn't make me work."

"Smart. I shall learn from you grasshopper." Ryan clapped his hands together and bowed his head.

Jess laughed. "What are you doing this weekend?"

Ryan shrugged. "I don't know. Probably something with Grace."

"You should go with me to this place." He handed him a flier that he had printed off.

"The Outsiders?"

"Yeah. It's a club right out of town."

"I'm pretty sure we aren't 18." Ryan laughed.

"I heard they don't ID." Jess reassured him.

"My mom will kill me." Ryan whispered. He couldn't afford to get into any more trouble. His mom barely trusted him as it was.

"She won't find out."

Ryan wasn't sure about that. She always seemed to find out everything.

"Just think about it. I heard it is a fun place to chill." Jess really wanted to go. He needed to get out of Stars Hollow. He felt like he was being suffocated.

"I'll think about it."

"That's all I ask." Jess took the flier and put it back in his notebook.

* * *

Rory and Lorelai were still sitting at their table. "Thanks for not abandoning me."

"Actually mom." She pointed outside. Dean was standing next to the gazebo. "Can I go see Dean?"

Lorelai looked at the gazebo and then back at Rory. "Go ahead. We will be right here."

"Thanks mom." Rory ran out of the diner and to Dean. "Hey."

"Hey." Dean smiled. "I saw you in there. I hoped that you would see me too."

"Yeah. What are you doing out here?"

"I went to your house to see you."

"Really?"

Dean nodded. He kicked his foot back and forth. He was nervous.

"What's going on?"

"I like you, Rory. I realized today that maybe I haven't made that clear. I think you are real special." He smiled. "I wasn't happy about moving here until I met you. Now, I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."

Rory smiled. That was the sweetest thing anyone had ever said to her. Before she realized what was happening, they both leaned in to kiss each other. It was a quick kiss, but Rory thought it was perfect. So did Dean. He couldn't stop smiling.

"Wow." Rory said first.

"Ditto."

"We kissed."

"Yeah."

"By the gazebo."

"Uh huh."

"In front of everyone." She turned around to see her mom, Ryan, and Luke staring at them through the diner window. When they saw her looking, they turned around, pretending to do other things.

"I've wanted to do that for a while now."

"Me too." Rory admitted.

"Will you be my girlfriend, Rory Gilmore?" Dean officially asked her.

Rory nodded with the biggest smile on her face. "Yes." She had been waiting for him to ask her for what felt like forever. She leaned in and gave him another kiss. "I should get back in there with my mom."

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow." He kissed her cheek. He liked doing that a lot.

Rory smiled and then ran into the diner. "Mom."

"Yes." Lorelai tried to play innocent.

"I know you saw."

"Saw what?" She played dumb.

"We didn't see anything." Ryan added.

"Dean and I kissed." Rory said happily. "Finally."

"Aw. Rory. That's great." She stood up and gave her daughter a hug. So it begins, she thought.

"I know you saw it."

"It was a pretty quick kiss." Ryan teased.

"Hey. Don't tease your sister."

"It wasn't quick enough." Luke added, protectively.

Lorelai smiled. He really was the cutest, especially when he was being overprotective.

"I've got to go tell Lane." Rory gave her mom one more hug and ran out of the diner.

"Girls." Ryan shrugged.

"Oh please. You know you were just as happy when you kissed Grace."

"At least I didn't kiss her in front of an audience." Ryan stated.

"Go help clear that table." Luke pointed.

"I'm not working today." Ryan argued.

"You are now." Luke told him.

Ryan sighed and then did as he was told. "As long as I get paid." He said as he walked away.

"What was that for?" Lorelai asked.

"I just wanted a minute with you." Luke sat down beside her.

"I like that you are the boss."

"It has its advantages on occasion." Luke reached for her hand.

Lorelai pointed to Ruby who was sitting at the counter coloring. "What did you and Ruby talk about earlier?"

"Oh nothing much." Luke played coy.

"Really? Because she seemed like she was in a better mood."

Luke shrugged. "'I think it was the pie."

"Must be." Lorelai wasn't convinced. "I can't believe Rory had her first kiss."

"I'm gonna be watching that kid." Luke told her.

"He is a good kid."

"He is a boy." Luke said as if she didn't know.

"I know, Luke." Lorelai smiled. "I like that you care about my kids so much."

"They are good kids."

Before Lorelai could say anything, her phone rang.

"Outside." Luke pointed.

"But we are dating. Don't I get special privileges?"

"Not a chance." He pointed again.

"I'm going. I'm going." She walked outside and answered the phone. "Hello."

"Lorelai," her mother's voice said on the other end of the phone.

Lorelai made a face. "Mom."

"You don't have to sound so thrilled." Emily said sarcastically

"I am thrilled mom." Lorelai rolled her eyes. "What's up?"

"I haven't heard from you in a while. I was hoping that you and the children could come to dinner Friday night." Emily told her. "I know it is last minute, but your father and I really want to see you all."

Lorelai thought about it and then got an idea. "Mom, would you be interested in keeping the kids this weekend?"

"The kids? Where will you be?" Emily asked. She was kind of excited about it.

Lorelai didn't want to tell her the truth. "I am going out of town."

"For what?"

"Business." Lorelai lied. "I wasn't sure I was going to get to go because I didn't want to leave the kids alone. If you can't keep them that's okay. I don't have to go."

"No." Emily stopped her. "I would love to keep them. I assume they would be staying with us."

"Yes. That's fine." She knew Ryan wouldn't be happy about it, but he would get over it. He always did. "I will bring them after school."

"That sounds wonderful." Emily was really excited. She missed the children terribly.

"Thanks mom. You are doing me a really big favor." Lorelai was also excited. She and Luke were finally going to be together. "See you soon."

"Goodbye, Lorelai." Emily hung up the phone. "Richard, I've got wonderful news." She felt like this was putting them one step closer to getting their family back.

* * *

At the Kim's residence, Rory and Lane were celebrating Rory's first kiss.

"Who got kissed?" Mrs. Kim walked into the room.

"Me, Mrs. Kim." Rory told her.

Mrs. Kim looked at Lane. "Kissing is bad. Very bad. Boys only want one thing. You are only allowed to kiss your husband." Mrs. Kim warned her as she walked out of the room.

Rory looked at Lane. "Should I tell Ryan?" She laughed.

Lane hit her shoulder and shook her head.

* * *

Back at the diner, Lorelai walked behind the counter.

"What are you doing?" Luke asked. Lorelai gave him a kiss. "What was that for?"

"There is more of that to come this weekend." She smiled.

"Does that mean we are on?" Luke became excited.

Lorelai nodded.

"Yes." Luke gave her another kiss.

"I can't wait."

"Me either." He was extremely excited. They both needed this time away together.

"Get a room." Ryan told them.

Lorelai smiled because soon enough they would. "We should go. We will pick Rory up on the way home."

"Sure. Come on Ruby." Ryan helped Ruby down from the bar stool.

"Bye Luke." Ruby ran around the counter and gave him a hug.

Both Luke and Lorelai were surprised. Maybe she was getting better.

"Alright, pumpkin. Let's go." They all walked out of the diner. "There she is." Lorelai said as they met Rory.

"Why are you so excited?" Rory asked. Her mom seemed extremely happy.

"I'm normal happy." Lorelai lied a little. "You guys are staying with your grandparents this weekend."

"What?" Ryan said quickly.

"Yay!" Ruby jumped up and down. She was excited. She really missed her grandparents.

Lorelai knew she was making the right decision. Seeing her grandmother might be exactly what Ruby needed.

"That sounds fun." Rory thought.

"Where are you going to be?" Ryan asked.

"Luke and I are going to go out of town."

"We can stay at home." Ryan thought that was a better idea.

Lorelai shook her head. "Nope. Not going to happen. You are staying with your grandparents." Lorelai was not going to change her mind. This weekend was happening. She and Luke were finally going to be together. It was about damn time.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought! More to come!**


	53. Punishment Enough

**As always thank you so much for all the reviews, faves, and follows. I'm sorry this one took me a while to get posted. I am finally ahead a few chapters, so it should be better. This is a much longer chapter, so that should make up for it!**

 **I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I really like it.**

 **P.S. Thanks DSLeo for your idea. I hope you like how I did it!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 53: Punishment Enough**

Lorelai and the girls were patiently waiting for Ryan to join them at the front door of the Gilmore mansion. "Mom. Seriously. Can you yell at him?" Rory asked her mom. She was tired of waiting. "This is ridiculous."

Lorelai gave Rory a look and then looked back at her son, who was walking slower and slower by the minute. "Ryan. You are staying with your grandparents. It doesn't matter how long it takes you to walk up the driveway." Lorelai warned him.

Ryan rolled his eyes. "You taught me this."

"I think he needs a consequence." Ruby suggested. "He isn't being very good."

"This is punishment enough." Ryan groaned. "The worst punishment."

Lorelai was now the one rolling her eyes. "Ryan. Come on. If you take any longer it will be Christmas."

"I will go get the presents." Ryan turned around.

"Ah uh." Lorelai walked towards her son and pulled him to the door. "Now."

"This is cruel and unusual punishment."

"I really need you to get on board with this and be on your best behavior." Lorelai told him. "Okay. It's just two days. You like your grandparents."

"Doesn't mean that I want to stay with them. I want to be in Stars Hollow."

Lorelai was happy to hear that. She never thought the time would come when Ryan wanted to be in Stars Hollow. She was grateful for that. It showed improvement, but at this very moment she needed him to get over it.

"I still think that it is unfair that Rory gets to see her friends while she is here, and I can't go back to Stars Hollow and hangout with Jess. You could have left us at home. Luke trusted Jess enough to let him stay by himself."

Lorelai sighed. She wasn't too happy about that, but Luke thought Jess would be fine staying at the diner. He was supposed to work most of the time and wouldn't have time to get into any trouble. Lorelai on the other hand was not convinced. "Yes. Well. I don't agree with Luke on this one. You are staying with your grandparents, and you can hang out with Jess next weekend."

Ryan grumbled. Lorelai understood his frustrations. Her parents were not the easiest people to get along with, but they did love their grandchildren.

"Can we knock now?" Ruby was growing impatient.

"Yes." Lorelai told her.

Emily opened the door immediately. "You are here. I thought I heard you fifteen minutes ago."

"You did." Rory whispered. She was tired of her brother's antics.

Lorelai nudged Rory. "We were waiting on Ryan. He was getting his things together."

"Well good. Come in. Come in." She ushered them into the foyer. "Richard. They are here." She turned and looked at Ruby. "Oh look at you. You have grown a foot."

"Not possible." She gave her grandmother a very big hug. "I love you grandma."

Lorelai smiled. It was sweet.

"Oh how I have missed you all." She gave Rory and Ryan both a hug after releasing little Ruby. Emily then looked at Lorelai. "You look nice."

"Thanks, mom." Lorelai never knew how to take a compliment from her mother.

"We are going to have a wonderful time this weekend. Maybe we can all go to the club."

"That's fine, but Ryan needs to study. He has a history test on Monday." Lorelai informed them. Ryan sighed. Of course she would remember.

"And Paris, Louise, and Madeline are coming over tomorrow." Rory told her grandmother. "I thought you said it was okay."

"Of course it is okay." Emily touched Rory's shoulder. "The more the merrier."

"I'm not kidding about that history test." Lorelai said again, her focus still on Ryan.

"We will make sure he studies." Emily reassured her daughter.

"Great." Ryan said sarcastically.

"You will be back on Sunday?" Emily thought that was what Lorelai had told her.

Lorelai nodded. "Around lunch time."

"This is a business trip?" Emily asked.

"Oh yeah." Lorelai lied.

"Liar. Liar." Ryan whispered in her ear, earning the death glare.

"What was that?" Emily asked.

"Nothing. He was just clearing his throat." Lorelai answered for him. She was not ready to explain Luke to her mother.

"Richard." Emily yelled. "I swear that man never takes a break."

"I can hear you, Emily. I'm right here."

"Grandpa." Ruby ran into his arms.

"There's my princess."

"Little devil." Ryan whispered again.

Lorelai nudged him.

"I think you have grown a foot."

"Not possible." She repeated.

"We are going to have a wonderful time this weekend."

"That's been established." Ryan said quickly.

"Oh let me guess." Emily looked at him. "You aren't happy staying here. You would rather be with your friends."

"I'm thrilled grandma." Ryan put on his best fake smile.

"You are just like your mother." Richard told him. "Always had a foot out the door."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. They always had to bring up her past behavior. It never failed. "Thanks, dad."

"Oh Lorelai. I was just joking."

"Sure."

"I had the chef make some of your favorites." She told the kids.

"Pudding?" Rory asked. "Pudding is our favorite."

"Chocolate pudding. I remembered." Emily smiled. She was very proud of herself.

"Can we go watch TV?" Ruby asked.

"No." Lorelai told her before either of her parents could answer. "You can't watch TV this weekend."

"Mommy." Ruby pouted. "That's not fair. It has been three days." Ruby remembered the timeline of her punishment.

"Yes I know, but you got in trouble at school today."

Emily and Richard shared looks. They weren't used to Ruby getting into trouble. She was always such a sweet girl.

"Your teacher sent me an email. You got your whole class in trouble. So no TV. That was the rule." Lorelai told a very disappointed Ruby.

Emily was actually impressed with her daughter. Lorelai wasn't one for discipline.

"This isn't fair." Ruby stomped off.

"Ruby." Lorelai started to go after her.

"It's okay mom. I'll talk to her." Rory gave her mom a kiss on the cheek. "Have fun on your business trip." She winked at her mom as she walked out of the room to find her sister.

"Bye sweetie." Lorelai turned her attention to Ryan. "Be good for your grandparents." She told her only son. "Please."

"Oh Lorelai you have nothing to worry about anything. Ryan is going to be just fine. Right, grandson."

"Right grandpa." Ryan faked a smiled. "Have fun. I hope you learn a lot." Ryan joked with his mom.

Lorelai gave him a hug and messed with his hair. She knew it was his favorite.

"Bye."

"Love you." Lorelai told him. Ryan waved and walked out of the room. "What a sendoff. I hate to leave Ruby so upset."

"She will be fine." Emily told her. "We will take good care of all of them."

"What is wrong with young Ruby?" Richard asked.

"Oh." Lorelai really didn't want to tell them. "She is just going through a phase." She hated using that word, but it was the only word that seemed appropriate. "She's been getting into a little trouble at home and at school." She admitted.

"You went through a similar phase from ages 4 to 16." Emily gave her a smirk.

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Thanks, mom. I know. I was a wild child, and now I'm getting paid back by my seven year old. I'm sure you are happy about that." She crossed her arms and waited for her mom to give her more grief.

"Of course we aren't happy about that, Lorelai." Emily sighed. "Seriously. We would never wish for our grandchildren to misbehave. I am actually very impressed that you have set rules and consequences. You used to swear that you would never punish your children because I was the meanest parent on the planet, and I never understood you."

That was absolutely true. She never did and still didn't. "Sorry mom."

"No need to apologize Lorelai. I am sure with a little consistency Ruby will get right back on track." Richard thought.

"Maybe it is her new school." Emily suggested.

"It is not her school, and it is not the town. End of discussion." She didn't want to talk about it any further. She didn't need them psychoanalyzing her life and telling her what she needed to do with her own children.

"Lorelai. Really." Emily shrugged.

"Mom. Promise me you won't let her watch TV. She has the really cute eyes and the pouty face, but you have to close your eyes and say no."

"We will be fine." Richard interrupted his daughter. "Lorelai, you have nothing to worry about. Go and have a wonderful time on your business trip. Need I remind you that we have raised a child before."

"As long as Ruby doesn't get pregnant." She saw the look of terror on her parents' faces. "Joke. Horrible joke. Sorry." Lorelai squinted. She shouldn't have said it, but she couldn't resist.

"Goodbye, Lorelai." Emily told her.

"I should probably say goodbye to Ruby." Lorelai thought. She was nervous about leaving them. She hadn't left them overnight very often. "I hate leaving her when she is so upset."

She will be fine." Richard ushered Lorelai to the door.

"Okay. Call me if you need anything."

"We will." Emily told her daughter. She was surprised by how overprotective Lorelai was being.

"And watch Ryan. Because he will tell you that he is studying, but he really isn't. Oh and he is prone to sneak out."

Richard continued to push her out the door.

"There are a lot of ways he can get out of this house if you aren't paying attention."

"We know." Richard smiled.

"I don't think you know all of the ways." Lorelai was sure of that. She had always been the best at sneaking out and getting back in without being noticed.

"We do. We had some of them sealed up."

"But." Lorelai protested.

"Lorelai. Again they will be fine. We will not let Ruby watch Television. We will make sure Ryan studies, and we will watch Rory and her friends tomorrow. Make sure they aren't too mischievous." Richard reassured her. "We have watched them before without any problems. You can trust us. We will call if anything comes up."

"Okay. Okay. Give Ruby a kiss for me."

"Goodbye, Lorelai." Emily said as she shut the door.

Richard shook his head. "When did she become so overprotective?"

"It has to do with me. It always has to do with me." Emily was sure of that, but she didn't care. She was just excited that she was going to get to spend time with her grandchildren. She missed them dearly.

* * *

"Alright Jess." Luke said as he finished packing his bag and turned to Jess who was sitting at the kitchen table. Jess looked up at his uncle. "We need to discuss the ground rules."

"We already have. Like a thousand times. You are really turning into a broken record."

"Well if it keeps you out of trouble, I don't mind being a broken record."

"I get it, Uncle Luke. I'm going to be on my best behavior."

Luke gave him a pointed look. He hoped and prayed that he wasn't making a huge mistake by living the boy unsupervised. There were so many things that could go wrong, but he wanted to trust his nephew. He wanted to give Jess a chance to prove himself. "This is a big deal. You staying here alone."

"I won't be alone technically." Jess hoped to make his uncle feel at ease. "Caesar is going to watch me during the day since you have said that I have to work in the diner while you are gone. We should really be discussing child labor laws."

Luke glared at him.

"I'm not even sixteen."

"Okay. That's enough. There are no child labor laws being broken." Luke shook his head. "But there might be some laws broken if you get into any trouble this weekend. I mean it, Jess. You better be on your best behavior. Lorelai is already not happy with me for letting you stay here alone."

Jess rolled his eyes. "It's not my fault she is so overprotective."

"She isn't overprotective." Luke defended.

"Oh okay. You have to say that. You are her boyfriend."

"She is a good mother."

Jess nodded. He knew that was true. He would never admit it out loud to anyone, but he was jealous of Ryan and Rory. He wished that his mom was half the mother that Lorelai was.

"But I want to trust you." Luke continued. "Don't blow it."

"I got it. I won't."

"Jackson and Sookie said they would check on you." Luke pointed.

"Again. I repeat. I got it." Jess sighed. "You can go away with Lorelai and have no worries. I'm a big boy. I can take care of myself. I used to stay home by myself all the time when I lived with my mom, and I was much younger." Jess reminded him.

Luke cringed. He hated hearing about Jess' life with Liz. It really sucked that she was so irresponsible when it came to her son. He knew their parents would be so disappointed in her. But he promised to do better by Jess. He would make sure that his nephew had the best life possible. As he thought about all of this, he tried to find the right words to say to Jess.

"Don't worry about it Uncle Luke. You don't have to say anything. I know how you feel." Jess could tell that his uncle was struggling.

Luke nodded. He then reached into his pocket and pulled out some money. "Here is some money just in case you get tired of diner food."

"Thanks."

"Spend it on food." Luke warned him.

"Got it boss." Jess saluted.

"Enough of that."

The boys turned towards the door when they heard a knock.

"That's your girl." Jess gave him a cheesy smile.

Luke rolled his eyes and grabbed his bag. He smiled as he opened the door. Lorelai looked more and more beautiful every single time he saw her. "Hi."

"Hey." She smiled right back at him. "Hey Jess." Lorelai looked over Luke's shoulder at the teenager.

"Hey Lorelai." Jess gave her a nod. "You two have a blast."

"Behave." Luke warned which earned an eye roll from Jess. "We will be back Sunday."

"Okay. I might be here."

"Jess." Luke's tone was stern.

"Kidding." Jess smirked.

Luke gave him a look and then looked back at Lorelai. "You ready."

"Yes. See you Jess." She said as they walked out of the apartment.

"Are you still mad at me?" Luke asked. "I know you aren't happy about Jess staying here alone."

"I'm not mad. I was never mad."

"You were a little mad." Luke remembered. "I could tell."

"How could you tell?" Lorelai was curious.

"Your eyebrow did this thing and you weren't smiling. You are usually always smiling."

"I'm not always smiling." Lorelai tried to hold a straight face, but started giggling once Luke began tickling her. "Hey that's not fair. You aren't playing fair." She continued to giggle.

"I'm really excited about this weekend." Luke told her.

"Well then we better get going." Lorelai grabbed his hand.

"You should take my bag. It is heavy." He joked.

Lorelai shook her head. "I'm a true lady. We never carry any bags ever. Not our own. Not others."

"Let's get out of here." He led her down the stairs. He was positive this was going to be the best weekend. She was too.

* * *

Back inside the apartment, Jess pulled out the flier for the Outsider. This was the perfect weekend for him to try the place out. He only wished that Ryan could go with him. He would make sure that no one caught him and that he stayed out of any trouble.

* * *

The Gilmore's had finished dinner. Emily was surprised by how quiet Ruby was during dinner. She was always so chatty, much like Lorelai at her age. She hated to see her granddaughter so sad. Emily walked up the stairs and made her way into the room they had always called Ruby's. Each grandchild had their own bedroom, decorated how they wanted. "Ruby." She looked around for the little girl, who was sitting on the floor playing with her dolls she had brought from home. "There you are. I thought you were going to get your pajamas on."

Ruby shook her head. "I'm not ready to go to bed." She told her grandmother, not losing focus on her dolls.

"You do not have to go bed just because you put your pajamas on."

Ruby had a pouty face. Emily stared at the little girl and then did something she couldn't remember ever doing. She sat down on the floor next to Ruby. She noticed Ruby look up at her with a confused face.

"Can I play with your dollies?" Emily asked.

"You want to play dollies with me?" Ruby was still a little confused. She loved her grandmother but wasn't used to her playing with her on the floor.

Emily nodded. "They are very pretty dollies."

Ruby handed her one. "This one is my favorite. I like her red dress."

"I like this one too." Emily smiled. "Where did you get this one?"

Ruby thought about it. "My daddy bought it for me." She remembered. "That's not why it is my favorite." Ruby quickly told her grandmother. "My daddy is never around. That's why he buys me a lot of dollies."

Emily felt her blood boil. She hated that Christopher wasn't around for his children. Emily felt guilty. For the longest time she blamed Lorelai for his absence. She thought that Lorelai wasn't being a good wife. It made her mad to think that Christopher would cheat on her daughter. He had not turned out the way she always thought that he would, and now his children were the ones that were suffering. "Do you miss your daddy?" Emily asked.

Ruby shook her head. "No. I have my mommy." She told her. "Even though she hasn't been very nice to me lately."

"Is that true?" Emily hoped to get the little girl to open up to her.

Ruby nodded. "She has been very mean to me."

"I heard you weren't being very nice to her or at school."

Ruby looked up at her grandmother and then back at her dolly.

"Do you think you've been acting differently lately?"

Ruby thought about it and shook her head. "I'm not different. My mommy and my teacher are different. My teacher Ms. Wallace was really mean today."

"How so?" Emily continued to pry.

"I was trying to tell her a story, but she didn't want to listen." Ruby said dramatically. "It was a good story, but she didn't care."

"When were you trying to tell her this story?"

"She was trying to teach us how to add. I already know how to add. 1 plus 1 is 2. 2 plus 2 is 4. See. Easy Peasy." Ruby explained.

Emily smiled. Ruby really was just like Lorelai.

"My story was better, but she made my whole class miss five minutes of recess. They were all mad at me." Ruby sighed. "That was so unfair."

Emily thought that was a good idea. The teacher was smart to put Ruby on the spot. "Ruby you can't interrupt your teacher even if you already know what she is talking about. That is rude, and Gilmores are not rude."

"I'm actually a Hayden." Ruby corrected her.

Emily gave her a look and tapped her on the nose. "It does not matter what your last name is. You are a Gilmore through and through. Never ever forget that. Understand young lady." She said softly.

Ruby smiled at her grandmother.

"I know it is very hard sometimes to pay attention to adults. We can just talk and talk and talk." Emily made her hands talk back and forth causing Ruby to laugh. "But most of the time we know what we are talking about, especially your teacher. You have to listen to her so you can become even smarter than you already are. I can already tell you are going to do amazing things Ruby Victoria, but you will have a very hard time succeeding if you have a bad reputation."

"What does that mean?" Ruby asked innocently.

"A reputation is how people view you based on how you behave and what other people say about your behavior." Emily tries to explain in the simplest terms. "You don't want to get a bad reputation. It will follow you around forever. You want people to know how sweet and good that you are." Emily kissed her forehead. "You are the sweetest little girl I know, and I always want you to be like that."

Ruby smiled at her grandmother. She understood what she meant. "I like to tell stories."

"You can tell stories Ruby, at the right time." Emily reassured her. "But you have to stop interrupting your teacher and disrupting your class. Okay."

Ruby nodded.

"And you have to be nice to your mommy."

Ruby nodded again.

"I miss you a lot, grandma." Ruby jumped into Emily's arms and gave her the biggest hug. Emily's heart felt full.

"Oh Ruby. My sweet Ruby. I miss you too." She held her tight. Oh how she loved her grandchildren. "So you know, if you want, you can tell me your story."

"It was about Luke and Kirk. Kirk has a thousand jobs, and he drives Luke crazy. Sometimes his head looks like it might explode. It is really funny."

"Who is Luke?" Then she remembered that Luke was the man who saved Ryan that night. They had met him in the hospital.

Ruby's face lit up. "Luke is the best, grandma. He makes really good chocolate milkshakes, but only if I am good at school. I have to be good for a whole week before he will make me another one. He is tough. Maybe tougher than mommy."

Emily became curious. "How do you know Luke?" She wanted to know more about him.

"He feeds us at the diner, and he is mommy's boyfriend." Ruby told her nonchalantly. "I really like him. I hope they get married and that we can become a real family." She had never said any of that out loud before.

Emily was shocked. Of course Lorelai had not told her about Luke. She was always so secretive, and Emily hated it. But then again, Emily should have known. The man wouldn't have stayed at the hospital all that time if there was nothing going on between the two of them.

"Can we play some more, grandma?"

"Sure, Ruby." Emily had a feeling that Lorelai was not on a business trip.

* * *

Ryan was upstairs in the room they had always called the upstairs living room. It was the only room with a TV. It was always Ryan's favorite room in a house with way too many rooms. He was supposed to be studying like he promised his grandparents, but instead he was lying on the couch talking to Grace on the phone. "I'm sorry that we can't hangout this weekend." Ryan told her.

"It's okay." Grace said on the other end of the line. "I understand. I still miss you though."

"I miss you too." Ryan said with a smile.

"Ryan." Richard said as he walked into the room.

Ryan jumped, his grandfather took him by surprise.

"This doesn't look like studying to me."

"Grandpa." Ryan sat up on the couch. "Hi."

Richard pointed to the phone, and Ryan sighed.

"Grace, I've got to go." He said as he hung up the phone. "I was about to start studying." He lied. He really had no intentions of studying.

"I thought we sent you up here an hour ago." Richard remarked as he joined his grandson on the couch.

"Well. Yeah. I had to get situated. There are a lot of things that go into studying. I've really got to get comfortable. It's good for the brain. Releases tension." Ryan babbled on.

Richard chuckled.

"I'm not trying to be funny grandpa. This is serious business." Ryan said with a straight face.

"Oh I'm not laughing at you. I'm remembering."

"Remembering?" Ryan shifted so that he could see his grandfather better.

"Your mother used to offer up similar reasoning when we would catch her doing something other than what she was actually supposed to be doing." Richard smiled. He would give anything to go back to that time and enjoy it better. He realized he had taken a lot of things for granted, especially with Lorelai.

"She's a very smart lady." Ryan nodded.

"Yes. Your mother has always been extremely smart. She was the smartest person in her class. It always came natural to her. She had…" Richard stopped himself before continuing. He didn't need to get into that with his grandson. Richard had always dreamed of his daughter's future, and it definitely hadn't turned out like he imagined.

Ryan could see the look on his grandpa's face. "She's doing well." He wanted his grandpa to know that. "She really likes her job. I would never tell her this and I'll deny ever saying it, but she's pretty awesome." Ryan smiled, as did Richard.

"That's good." Richard nodded. "That is really good. Your secret is safe with me."

"Good. She would never believe you anyways."

"I'm really glad that things are working out for your mother, but…"

Ryan looked at his grandpa. Of course there would be a but.

"An education can lead to an endless amount of opportunities. It can open so many doors." Richard told his grandson. "You have to be disciplined and focused."

Ryan nodded. "I know. You don't have to worry about me, grandpa. Mom tells me those same things all the time, and even though she doesn't think that I am listening, I am." He reassured him. "I listen."

"I want you to have the best future available, and I know that your father has not set a very good example for you."

Ryan shrugged. "He hasn't really set any kind of example for me. You actually have to be around to do that."

Richard nodded. He still couldn't believe how Christopher had turned out. Nothing had turned out how Richard thought it would. "I'm sorry that your father hasn't been around. Your grandmother and I."

Before he could finish his sentence, Ryan interrupted. "You don't have to say it. I'm glad they were married for a little while. We got to pretend we were normal." Ryan sighed. "I'm fine. Really grandpa. You don't have to worry about me."

"I want you to know that I am here for you. Even if we live thirty minutes away. If you ever need any advice or to talk about manly stuff, I can help you with that." Richard offered. He should have offered sooner. He wanted Ryan to have a good male influence in his life.

Ryan smiled. He could tell his grandpa seemed a little nervous. "Thanks, grandpa."

"I miss having you so close. I enjoyed our trips to the club on occasion."

Ryan nodded. He hadn't enjoyed the club as much, but he did enjoy his grandpa's company. He was a smart man. He thought differently than Ryan, but that was okay. He was still a good man. "Me too. Maybe we could go tomorrow." Ryan would do anything to get out of the house.

"Oh no. Your mother gave us strict instructions."

"I won't tell her." Ryan smiled.

Richard chuckled. "I suppose we could go in the morning, and you could come back and study. Really study. No phone calls to this Grace." Richard remembered her name. "I'm guessing that she is your girlfriend."

Ryan nodded.

"How long have you been seeing her?"

"A few months." Ryan thought that was about right.

"You like her a lot?" Richard asked.

Ryan nodded.

"You will have to bring her over so that we can meet her." Richard told his grandson.

"You may have already met her."

"Is that so?"

"She came to the hospital to visit a few times."

Richard shook his head. "I don't remember much about that time other than how worried we were about you."

Ryan sighed guiltily. He knew how much trouble he had caused, and he felt bad about it. "I'm sorry grandpa. I'm sorry I worried you."

"You were lucky." Richard pointed at him softly. "Very, very lucky. You better remember that the next time you think about doing something dangerous like that again." He warned him.

"Don't worry, Grandpa. Mom already gave me a thousand lectures and a pretty strict punishment."

"Good for her." Richard was happy Lorelai hadn't let him get away with it. "That's the only way you are going to learn." He looked at his watch, stood up, and grabbed the phone from Ryan. "I want you to study for at least an hour."

"Yes sir." Ryan smiled and grabbed his textbook.

Richard gave his grandson a nod before walking out of the room. He was so happy to have the kids for the weekend. He wished there was a way they could see them more often. All of three of them brought great joy to his life.

Ryan flipped through his textbook. He had been pleasantly surprised by his conversation with his grandfather. It wasn't so bad.

* * *

Lorelai and Luke were driving in the rain. "I can't believe this weather." Lorelai stated. "Did you know that it was going to rain like this?" She asked.

Luke shook his head. "Nope. I thought it was supposed to be a nice weekend."

"It's going to be a nice weekend." She took his hand in hers. "It's going to be the best weekend."

Luke smiled but before he could say anything, there was a loud pop and the truck began to wobble. "Oh damn."

"What happened?" Lorelai jumped.

"I think we have a flat." Luke said sadly.

"Oh Luke."

"I'll get out and fix it."

"It's raining."

"We can't just sit on the side of the road." He grabbed his jacket. "I'll be fine."

"I can help."

Luke chuckled. "We both know you are more help staying in the truck."

"Mean." Lorelai said but couldn't hold a straight face.

"I'll fix it, and we will be on our way." He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss before jumping out of the truck into the rain.

* * *

Rory was sitting in her bedroom reading her favorite book Anna Karenina. She always liked to read a book before bed. Oddly enough it helped her relax. It was a little weird for her to be back in her grandparents' house. She had stayed with them so many times before, but this time it was different. She missed being in Stars Hollow. She missed her house, even though she had to share with her little sister. She also missed Dean and Lane and even Jess. Life in Stars Hollow had been so much better than she ever imagined. She was happy that her mom had taken a chance on the small little town.

She stopped reading her book when she heard a tiny tap on the door.

"Come in." Rory said, knowing who it was.

It was Ruby. She walked into the room and shut the door behind her. She was holding a pillow and a blanket. "Rory." She said with her little voice.

Rory tilted her head and closed her book. She knew she wasn't going to read anymore that night. "What are you doing in here? You are supposed to be in your bed."

"I have a headache." She said with a sad face.

A smile crept across Rory's face. She had a feeling her little sister was faking it. Ruby had gotten used to sleeping in the same room with Rory. "Do I need to get you some medicine?" She knew Ruby would say no. She hated medicine with a passion. When Ruby was two, their mom tried to give her grape Tylenol. However, not a single drop got into Ruby's mouth. It was all over the walls, floors, and Lorelai. It was a huge mess, and Lorelai vowed to never give her little girl medicine again.

Ruby shook her head as expected. "Can I sweep with you?"

Rory smiled. She couldn't say no when she talked like that. It was extremely adorable. Rory scooted over and Ruby ran to the bed.

"Thanks, Rory." She fixed her pillow and got comfortable.

Rory felt her head. Oddly, she felt a little warm. "Are you okay, Ruby?"

"I told you I had a headache, but I'll be okay." Ruby snuggled next to Rory. "I miss mommy."

"I thought you were mad at mommy." Rory thought she should mention it.

"Well she took TV away from me. That's not very nice." Ruby thought she had a valid reason to be mad. "But I still miss her."

"I miss her too."

"I hope she is having fun with Luke. Maybe they are watching TV." Ruby said innocently.

Rory chuckled. She didn't want to think about what her mom and Luke were doing.

* * *

Luke and Lorelai finally walked into the cabin. Luke was soaking wet. Lorelai was only slightly damp from the walk to the cabin. Poor Luke. He was exhausted. It had taken him forever to change the tire because of the weather. "We are finally here."

"Luke, I am so sorry."

"This is not how I wanted this weekend to start."

Lorelai sighed. "Me either. But that's okay. We have all weekend." She kissed his cheek. "I know you are tired and cold."

"I'm going to get changed and start a fire."

Lorelai nodded. "I can start a fire. Surprisingly I know how to do that."

Luke smirked. "That's really sexy."

"Go get out of those clothes." Lorelai smiled at him. She was actually pretty tired too. She never thought it would take them that long to get to the cabin, but the weather and the flat had put a slight damper in their plans.

After Lorelai started the fire, she decided to head to the bedroom. It wasn't hard to find. There was only one, even though the cabin was a pretty nice size. "Luke. The fire is all warm and cozy. Waiting for you to join me." As she rounded the corner, she smiled. Luke had changed his clothes and fallen asleep on the bed.

Lorelai got herself ready for bed and joined Luke. It wasn't what she had planned, but maybe it was better. She snuggled closely to him. They would always have tomorrow.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	54. Stupid Deer

**As always you guys are the best! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 54: Stupid Deer**

Luke opened his eyes the next morning. It only took him a second to remember that he was at his cabin lying next to Lorelai. He looked down at her and couldn't help but smile. She was nestled in his arms facing him. He couldn't remember getting in bed let alone her getting in bed with him. He must have fallen asleep after changing his clothes. He had been exhausted.

He focused all of his attention on the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He couldn't believe it, but she looked even better when she was asleep. He was still amazed that she had chosen to be with him. She could have anyone in the world but she chose him.

Lorelai began to stir. Her eyes slowly opened and she yawned. She smiled as she saw Luke staring at her.

"You're watching me sleep." She said bashfully.

"You're beautiful." He kissed her forehead.

"You know," she scrunched her nose. "You don't have to compliment me. You are getting lucky on this trip." She was sure of that. She wanted to be with him more than anything. It was time.

"I would say it no matter what. I don't have to get lucky to know you are beautiful." Luke told her honestly. He was okay just lying next to her.

"In that case continue boosting my ego."

"Come here." Luke pulled her closer to him and began kissing her slowly, morning breath and all. They continued to kiss, each kiss becoming more and more passionate. Until they heard a loud crash coming from what Luke assumed was the kitchen.

"What the hell was that?" Lorelai pulled away from Luke. "Did you invite someone else on this trip?" Lorelai asked jokingly.

"I was about to ask you the same thing. Hoping one of your kids stowed away." Luke got out of bed. "You stay here. I'll go check it out."

"Oh no way." Lorelai jumped out of bed. "You are not leaving me here alone."

"Okay. Come on."

Luke grabbed her hand and she followed him.

"Are you going to go out there unprotected?" Lorelai asked.

"We will be fine."

"I think there is a burglar in here."

Luke shook his head. "Come on. We have nothing to worry about. You are being over dramatic."

"I'm always dramatic. Are you just now figuring that out?" Lorelai laughed.

Luke pulled her out of the room. "Oh shit." Luke said as they rounded the corner and saw a deer standing in the kitchen eating all of their food.

"Oh wow." Lorelai had never seen a deer so up close and personal.

"No. No. No." Luke kept mumbling.

Lorelai tripped and the deer realized she was not alone. She looked at the couple and before they could do anything the deer ran out of the back of the house, knocking down a shelf on her way out.

"Damn it." Luke was in disbelief. In all the time they had the cabin, this had never happened.

"At least it wasn't a bear." Lorelai tried to be optimistic.

Luke gave her a look before walking further into the kitchen. "That thing ate all of our food." He still couldn't believe it. "Everything I brought."

"Is that the coffee?" Lorelai pointed sadly to the floor. Luke nodded. "No coffee. Stupid deer!" She exclaimed. "Has this ever happened before?"

"No. I don't know how it got in." Luke walked to the back. "We must have forgotten to lock the door."

"Oh that was my fault. You went to bed early. I should have known to lock the door. I always forget. Ryan fusses at me all the time for forgetting."

"This isn't your fault. I shouldn't have fallen asleep."

"You were exhausted and really wet." Lorelai rubbed his shoulders. "It's okay. We will find coffee."

"That's all your worried about?"

"Uh yeah. Duh." Lorelai hit his shoulder. "I cannot get through the day without coffee. You know this about me."

"Yes I do." Luke gave her a quick kiss. "There is a grocery store and a small coffee shop in town."

"Coffee. Coffee. Coffee." She jumped up and down. "I know it won't be as good as Luke's coffee though." She was sure of that. Luke Danes made the best cup of coffee she had ever tasted, and she would know. She was the queen of coffee.

"At least you have Luke." He smirked.

"Yeah. That's a close second to the coffee."

Luke shook his head and then leaned in and kissed her. He didn't think anything else could go wrong with this weekend.

* * *

At the Gilmore mansion, the kids had eaten breakfast with their grandparents. Ruby hadn't been very hungry and asked if she could go back upstairs. Emily immediately began to worry that something was wrong with her. Rory and Ryan figured that she just missed their mom, and she would be okay. Emily decided not to worry about it and would check on her later.

Rory's friends had come over after breakfast, and they were still upstairs hanging out.

Ryan had gone to the club with his grandfather. He would do anything to get out of the house and avoid studying. They didn't stay at the club too long, but it hadn't been so bad. Ryan couldn't remember the last time he had gone to the club. It wasn't really filled with his kind of people. Rory had always fit in this lifestyle better than he had.

"Alright young man." Richard said as they walked into the house. "You should go study."

"Yes sir." Ryan nodded. He knew he could no longer avoid the inevitable.

"Thank you for joining me at the club."

"Anytime, grandpa."

"Oh great." Emily said as she met them in the foyer. "The two of you are back. I had the maid bake some cookies. Do you mind taking them up to Rory and her friends?"

"They are still here." Ryan said with a grunt.

"Yes and from what I can tell they are having a wonderful time." Emily smiled.

Ryan rolled his eyes.

"Come on. Come into the kitchen with me."

Ryan followed his grandmother, and Richard smiled at the sight. It warmed his heart to have his grandchildren back in his home and in his life. He hoped they didn't do anything to ruin it. They mostly meaning Emily.

* * *

Upstairs, Rory was enjoying her time with Paris, Madeline, and Louise. They were nothing like Lane, but she did miss them. They had been her friends for a very long time. She couldn't remember a time when Paris wasn't trying to outdo her. She knew that rivalry would be revisited if she went to Chilton.

"I still can't believe your mom moved you to Mayberry." Paris said for what seemed like the thousandth time. "She always seemed so cool and intelligent. I don't know what happened to her."

"She is still cool. Stars Hollow is not Mayberry." Rory defended. She was always having to defend things to Paris. Rory was positive that Paris could argue with a brick wall and actually win.

"Don't listen to her." Louise spoke up.

"Yeah." Madeline agreed. "You know Paris. She always has to have something to complain about."

"And you have a boyfriend." Paris remembered Rory had mentioned it.

Rory nodded.

"I want pictures." Louise told her.

"I bet he is tall." Madeline added.

"I don't have a picture." Rory realized.

"It isn't official if you don't have a picture." Madeline explained.

"It's officially ruining your life." Paris said dramatically, throwing her hands up in the air. She didn't understand how Rory didn't see this. It was crystal clear to Paris.

"Dean is not ruining my life." Rory sighed. Sometimes Paris was the worst.

"Dean." Madeline smiled. "So dreamy."

"He sounds super hot."

"It is just a name. A name doesn't make a person hot." Paris explained. "You two really are a waste of space."

"Remind me why we are friends with her." Madeline looked at Louise.

"Because she is Paris Gellar."

"Oh right."

"You all know that I am right." Paris pointed. "A boy can ruin your focus. We have plans. Does this Dean have the same plans?"

"Dean isn't going to get in the way of my plans or your plans." Rory was becoming frustrated with her.

Ryan was outside of the door. He decided not to go in until after he ease dropped for a few minutes.

"At least you will be at Chilton next year."

Rory didn't say anything. She hadn't decided yet.

"You are going to Chilton?" Paris picked up on Rory's nonverbal cues. "We all got in. You got in, didn't you? I know if the Barbie twins got in then you did too."

"Thanks a lot." Madeline rolled her eyes.

"I got in."

On the outside of the door, Ryan looked confused. He hadn't heard her mention the acceptance letter. He knew they would have celebrated. Their mom would have hired a marching band and fireworks.

"Then why the radio silence?" Paris asked.

"Rory you have to go." Louise told her. "You were made for a place like Chilton."

"I…I…I haven't…Decided." Rory admitted.

"What?" Paris was outraged. "What is there to decide? You are going to Chilton."

Ryan couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"This has to do with Dean." Paris was sure of it.

"No it doesn't." Rory said quickly. "I realized there is more to life than Chilton."

"Yeah a life filled with would you like fries with that." Paris quipped.

"Stars Hollow is a nice school."

"For an underachiever like your brother."

Ryan rolled his eyes. She was always insulting him.

"This is my decision, Paris. No one else but me." Rory sighed.

"Your mom is okay with this?" Madeline asked.

Ryan mouthed no from outside the door. He knew she wouldn't be okay with this if she knew.

"Well." Rory stuttered.

"You haven't told her." Paris pointed again. She knew Lorelai well enough to know that she would not be okay with Rory's decision.

"I need some time to think about it. Can we just drop this already?" Rory raised her voice. She was getting tired of going back and forth. She didn't have to explain herself to anyone. This was her decision.

"I thought you and your mom told each other everything." Louise remembered that they had a freaky relationship unlike most mothers and daughters.

Before Rory could answer, Paris interrupted. "She hasn't told her because she knows that her mom won't be okay with it. She won't allow it."

"Paris."

"You have to go to Chilton. This whole year has sucked without you. I have no competition."

Louise and Madeline shared looks.

"Paris." Rory sighed. She was never going to win this argument. That she was sure of.

"I need some air." Paris stood up and walked out of the room. Ryan hid behind one of the pillars so that Paris wouldn't know he had been ease dropping. He wasn't ready to talk to his sister about this. He was mad because he knew it had to do with Dean. There was no other explanation. He sat the cookies down outside the door and walked away.

Back inside the room, Rory sat down on the bed. She felt bad about Paris.

"Don't worry, Rory." Madeline tried to comfort her.

"She will get over it." Louise added.

"If you don't want to go to Chilton then that's your decision." Madeline hoped to make her feel better.

"No one else."

"I know. I'm not sure what I want." Rory wished she did. Part of her wanted to go and the other part wanted to stay at Stars Hollow High. She didn't know what to do, and it sucked.

"Well let's stop talking about Chilton. I'm getting a headache." Madeline told her.

"Let's talk about Dean." Louise sat on the bed with Rory.

"Ooh perfect idea Louise."

Rory smiled. She would happily welcome the distraction, and she really liked talking about Dean. He was a good subject.

* * *

Ryan made his way into his little sister's room. He expected to find her playing with her toys, but instead she was lying on her bed asleep. Ryan shook his head and walked further into the room. He knelt down by her bed. Her face looked a little pale. He felt her forehead. She was clammy and hot. "Ruby." He said softly as he shook his sister gently.

She opened her eyes and stared at her brother.

"I don't feel good." She said sadly.

"What hurts?"

"Everything."

Ryan stood up. "I'm going to go get grandma. It's going to be okay." Ryan was worried about her. He had never seen her so sick.

* * *

Lorelai and Luke walked into the cabin carrying a few bags of groceries. They had eaten at the coffee shop. Lorelai was happy to have a belly full of coffee.

"That was fun."

Luke set the groceries on the counter.

"Definitely not how I thought this weekend was going to go." Luke admitted.

"How did you think it was going to go?" Lorelai joked with him.

"You and me in bed all weekend." He said with a smile.

"That sounds romantic."

"We could still make that happen." Luke walked around the counter and wrapped his arms around Lorelai. He placed small kisses on her neck causing her to moan.

"That feels nice."

He continued to kiss her until she pulled away to lead him to the bedroom. They were finally going to have their moment.

"Luke. Luke." They heard a voice shouting.

"Are you expecting someone?" Lorelai looked at him.

"No." Luke shook his head.

"Luke. Luke."

Luke walked back into the main room to see a man staring at them through the screen door. "Ernie is that you?"

"Luke." Ernie walked into the house. "Thank God you are here. I thought I saw your truck." He paused when he saw Lorelai. "Oh hey. You are beautiful. Luke never brings lady friends here. You must be the real deal."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Ernie what's wrong?"

"The storm ruined my cabin. There is water everywhere. I need some help." He thought about it. "Oh God. I didn't mean to interrupt. You two were probably busy with something pretty important. Unless you are me. And you and your wife haven't been busy in five years."

Lorelai gave Luke a look.

"Okay. Ernie. I can help you." Luke wanted him to stop talking. He looked at Lorelai. "I'll be right back."

"I can help."

"No that's okay. You relax." He gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I'll be back."

Lorelai smiled. It was the universe. The universe was against them.

* * *

Emily had taken Ruby's temperature. It was a little over a hundred. She decided to run her a cold bath in hopes of breaking the fever. If that didn't work they may have to take her to the doctor and call Lorelai.

 **That darn universe! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Let me know what you thought!**


	55. Not a Chance Buster

**I'm guessing the last chapter wasn't very good. I hope you all like this one and are still reading this thing.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 55: Not a Chance Buster**

Ruby was sitting in her bed. Emily was trying to get her to eat some soup. Ruby continued to shake her head. "No." She told her grandmother. "I'm not hungry."

"You need to eat." Ryan told her. "It will make you feel better." He was really worried about his little sister and wished that his mom was there. She always knew what to do in situations like these.

Ruby shook her head again. She didn't believe him. Nothing was going to make her feel better.

"She is still pretty clammy, grandma." Rory said as she felt her sister's forehead for the tenth time.

"Since she won't eat let's see if her fever has gone down any." Emily grabbed the thermometer. "Okay sweetheart. Open up and stick this under your tongue."

Ruby felt weak. She barely had enough energy to open her mouth, but she did as she was instructed.

"How is she?" Richard asked as he walked into the house.

"The same." Ryan answered.

"We are taking her temperature." Emily said as the thermometer beeped. Emily took the thermometer out of the little girl's mouth.

Ryan could tell by the look on her face that it wasn't good. "Grandma."

"I think we need to call the doctor again. Her temperature has gone up." Emily had a concerned look on her face. She looked at Richard. "I also think we are going to have to call Lorelai."

"No." Ruby told them. "You can't call mommy. You will ruin her time with Luke."

Ryan and Rory both shared looks.

"I thought your mother was on a business trip." Emily stated, although she had already figured out otherwise.

Ryan and Rory didn't say anything.

Emily decided not to worry about it. Lorelai had taught them how to keep secrets from them just like she always had. "Ruby, sweetheart. I think we are going to have to take you to the doctor."

"No." Ruby shook her head. "I hate doctors. I'm okay."

"Ruby, you feel horrible." Rory told her. "The doctor will make you feel better."

Ruby pouted but didn't argue any further.

"Richard call the doctor. Tell him we are on our way." Emily felt her forehead again. She was really worried about her. It took her back to when Lorelai had been sick as a child. It was really the only time that she would let Emily hold her. It made her feel needed and important. "It is going to be okay, sweetie." She wrapped her arms around the little girl. "I promise. The doctor is going to make you feel better."

Ruby didn't argue. She just rested her head on her grandmother's shoulder.

* * *

Luke walked back into the cabin after a few hours. Lorelai was in the kitchen. She had made them some dinner.

"You cooked?" Luke asked nervously.

"Noodles and a can of that spaghetti sauce you bought." Lorelai smiled. "I know how to boil noodles. I can open a can, believe it or not. Not too difficult. I just choose not to do it that much. We should have bought those tater tots I wanted. That would have been a good meal."

Luke smiled. "A woman of many talents."

"That took a long time."

"There was water everywhere. Ernie wasn't kidding." Luke still couldn't believe how messy the house had been. "And sometimes he can be a little dramatic."

"Really. I couldn't tell." Lorelai joked.

"I'm really sorry that it took so long." He walked over to her and gave her a kiss.

She made a face. "You smell." She told him honestly. "I think you need a shower."

"You are probably right." Luke sniffed his shirt. "I'll go shower and then we can eat."

Lorelai nodded. "That sounds like a good idea."

Luke walked away but as he got to the bedroom door, he turned around. "You could join me. If you can handle the smell." He said hopefully.

Lorelai bit her bottom lip. She was hoping he would suggest it. She walked out of the kitchen, and he took her hand. Before they could make it to the bedroom, her cell phone began to ring. "I hate cell phones." Luke exclaimed.

"I'm sorry. I have to get it. It could be the kids."

"I know." Luke leaned against the doorframe. "I'll be right here."

Lorelai grabbed her phone and answered it. "Hello."

Luke noticed her face change very quickly. She didn't have to say anything for him to know that something was wrong.

"How high? Oh. No she has never had a fever that high. Take her to the doctor. I will be there soon. Tell her I'm coming." Lorelai was in pure panic mode. "Call me as soon as you get to the doctor. Keep me posted." Lorelai hung up the phone.

"What's wrong?" Luke asked as soon as she hung up the phone.

"Ruby is sick." She could barely say it. She felt like she was going to cry at any minute. Her baby was sick and she wasn't there to be with her.

"Let's go."

"What about your shower?"

"Doesn't matter. Grab your stuff. I'll worry about a shower later." Luke gave her a hug. He could tell she was a nervous wreck. "I'll get Ernie to clean all of this up."

"Thanks, Luke."

"Everything is going to be okay."

"Promise?" She said softly.

"I promise." He kissed her forehead. He knew everything would be okay.

* * *

Back in Jess' world, he had worked in the diner for a little while and then snuck out to go to the Outsiders. It was early. He was smart enough to know that fun stuff didn't happen early at a bar, but he needed to get out of Stars Hollow.

He walked into the bar without any trouble. Those guys in the diner had been right about the ID thing. Jess was impressed. To his surprise there were a good bit of people already there. His mind immediately went to the girl sitting at a table alone. She had beautiful dark hair and piercing green eyes. She seemed pretty focus on whatever she was working on.

Jess wanted to talk to her, but he was nervous. She was probably in college. He was only fifteen. He still couldn't believe he was able to get into the bar. He was expecting to get turned away. He tried to play it cool most of the time, but he never felt that cool.

After a few moments of staring at the mysterious girl, she looked up at him. Jess tried to look away, but she had already caught him. She pointed for him to come to her table. He pointed at himself like he was confused. She rolled her eyes and nodded her head for him to come over.

Jess took a breath and made his way to her table. "Hi." He greeted her.

"You were staring at me." She said quickly.

"No I wasn't."

She nodded. "Yes you were. I'm not blind. I saw you."

"Okay. I guess I was."

"Why?"

"You are in a bar and you are more focused on writing in your notebook."

"Yeah. So."

Jess shrugged. She was quick on her feet.

"You can sit if you want."

"I don't want to interrupt."

"You aren't interrupting. Sit." She pointed.

Jess did as she instructed. "You seem so focused on what you are working on."

"I like to write poetry."

"Do you participate in open mic night?" He pointed to the stage.

"No." She answered quickly. "I just like to listen."

"I like to read." He pointed to her notebook. "Can I read yours?"

She shook her head. "No one reads mine."

"Then why do you do it?"

"For myself." She pointed to herself. "I'm not really one to do things because other people want me to do them."

"Me either." Jess admitted.

"So do you have a name, stalker boy?" She smiled.

"I'm not a stalker."

"You were staring at me. That in my opinion, constitutes stalking, and my opinion is the only one that matters."

"If I tell you my name, then you have to tell me yours." He tried his best at flirting. He had never been very good at it.

"You sound like a five year old."

"Maybe so."

"Come on." She flipped her hair. This time Jess was sure that she was flirting with him.

"Jess." He told her. "My name is Jess."

"I like it. That is such a bad boy name. Are you a bad boy?" She asked.

"You'll just have to get to know me, girl whose name I don't know yet."

She flashed her beautiful smile at Jess. "Scarlett. My name is Scarlett."

"Like the Scarlett letter." It was the only thing that had popped into his head.

"Yes. Actually."

"Seriously." Jess was surprised. He had only meant it as a joke.

"My mom was obsessed with that book. She felt bad for the main character. Besides I'm a product of an affair. Makes sense right." She said like it was no big deal.

"You are totally messing with me."

She shrugged. "I guess you'll just have to get to know me, Jess."

He took a moment to respond. "I guess so."

"How did you get in here?"

"What?" Jess tried to play it cool.

"There is no way that you are 21." Scarlett shook her finger at him. "I'm smarter than that."

"The bouncer didn't have a problem with it. He thought I was 21. I must be 21."

Scarlett shook her head. "That guy is blind and deaf. He has been working here for 800 years. That's why everyone comes here because they know they won't be carded."

"Well then how old are you?" He had a feeling she wasn't 21 either.

"Old enough." She said simply.

"You aren't 21 either."

"I'm 17." She told him.

"Me too." He lied.

"I'm a senior at Woodbridge." She continued.

"Stars Hollow High."

She got excited when he said Stars Hollow. "I love that little town. It is so small, but it has so many interesting characters."

"You can say that again. It is pretty crazy."

"My dad likes to get coffee from this little diner."

"Luke's." Jess knew that's what she was talking about.

"Yeah. That's it. Of course you would know." She smiled.

"My Uncle is Luke."

"Such a small town."

"Yep." He agreed.

"I might have to stop in for a cup of coffee."

"We are usually open. You can come at any time."

"Will you wait on me?"

"If you leave a good tip." Jess felt like he was getting much better at this flirting thing.

Scarlett chuckled. "Depends on the service."

"Luke's has the best service in town." He smiled back at her. She really was beautiful. "So do you come here often?"

"Yes. That's why I know for a fact that you never come here."

"This is my first time." Jess admitted.

"You are going to love listening to the open mic and drinking coke."

Jess shook his head. "I'm probably going to want a beer."

"Fat chance." Scarlett chuckled. "They may let you in this place, but the bartender isn't going to serve you. He knows the bouncer is…"

"Blind and deaf." Jess finished her sentence.

"Yep. You catch on quick Jess."

"I do like coke."

"Good to know."

Jess tried his best to peak at her writings.

"Not a chance, buster. Not a chance."

Jess shook his head. He had a feeling he was going to like hanging out with her a lot. He hoped that she didn't care that he was actually 15. Maybe she wouldn't have to find out.

* * *

Mia walked into the kitchen where Sookie was hard at work. "Sookie you really outdid yourself with the food today. The guests are on cloud 9 with that sauce you made."

Sookie smiled widely. "The secret is peaches. It is a creamy peach sauce. I'm in love with it. If Lorelai was here she would talk about making love to it. It is that good."

"It really is that good." Mia had been so lucky when she hired Sookie. She had to be one of the best chefs in the area. "Fortunately, you never cease to amaze me. Although, tonight you seem extra cheerful. What has you so happy?" Mia wondered.

"Lorelai." Sookie danced with her shoulders. Mia gave her a pointed look. "I'm just so happy for her and Luke. They finally got away this weekend. I hope they are having a wonderful time. God knows she deserves it. After everything she has done for those kids. I can't imagine being a single mom, and I only have one kid. I'm just so glad that she met Luke. He is such a good guy. I can tell that he loves those kids already. And Lorelai." Sookie took a breath to smile, happily. "I know Luke. I know he loves her too."

"Don't get ahead of yourself, Sookie." Mia stopped her. "It is just one weekend."

"Oh Mia." Sookie shook her head. "No. You are completely underestimating the power of that cabin. It surprisingly is a very magical place. That is where little Davey was conceived."

Mia chuckled. "I didn't know that." She made a face. "Actually I don't think I wanted to know that."

"Well don't say anything to Luke. He doesn't know that Jackson and I borrow the cabin from time to time."

"Sookie." Mia gave her a look.

Sookie smiled guiltily. "It is a nice, free vacation. I can tell you where the hideaway key, but don't use it this weekend. I'm one hundred percent sure that the bedroom is preoccupied."

"Oh Sookie." Mia hit her shoulder. "I don't know what I'm going to do with you."

"Love me forever and ever because of my bubbly personality."

"That I can do." Mia rubbed her shoulder.

Sookie began humming, Lorelai and Luke, over and over again. She was just way too excited.

* * *

Lorelai and Luke made record time to the hospital. Her father had called to let them know that the doctor was admitting Ruby into the hospital to monitor her condition. Richard told her not to worry. Everything was okay.

Lorelai couldn't believe how she was feeling. Yet another one of her kids were in the hospital, and she hadn't been there for her. Her kids were the most important things in her world. She was always there for them, but this time she felt like she had let Ruby down.

She made her way to the front desk. "I'm looking for Ruby Hayden. She was admitted about an hour ago. I'm her mother."

"One minute." The nurse told her. "I'll be right with you."

"Oh no." Lorelai shook her head. "I need you to be right with me right now."

"Lorelai." Luke touched her shoulder.

"Please." She pleaded with the nurse. "She is only seven. She needs her mommy. That title belongs to me. Take me to my child."

"Mom." Rory walked down the hallway.

"Never mind." Lorelai told the nurse. "Rory." She ran into her daughter's arms.

"She's okay. She is going to be okay." Rory kept repeating. "The doctor wanted to keep her until her fever breaks, and she feels like eating again."

"She stopped eating." Lorelai said sadly. "My poor sweet girl."

"I'll take you to her. She has been asking for you."

Lorelai started following Rory but realized Luke wasn't following them. "Hey." She turned to him.

"You go ahead." Luke waved. "I'll wait here."

Lorelai shook her head. "I want you with me." She held out her hand.

Luke took the hint and grabbed her hand.

Lorelai, Luke, and Rory walked into Ruby's hospital room. Ryan was sitting in bed with his little sister. Emily and Richard were standing next to the bed. Ruby looked so tiny, and her face was pale. "Look who I found." Rory said.

"Mommy." Ruby said with a slight smile on her face.

Ryan got out of the bed, and Lorelai took his place.

"I'm here sweet baby. I'm right here." Lorelai stroked Ruby's hair.

"I'm sorry I've been so bad so bad, mommy." Ruby said innocently.

"Oh Ruby." Lorelai kissed her forehead. "That's not why you are sick, sweetheart. I promise it doesn't work like that."

"I haven't been very nice lately."

"It's okay baby. Everyone has a bad day."

"Bad weeks." Ryan added.

"Ryan." Lorelai warned.

"Sorry." Ryan shrugged.

While Lorelai was comforting her daughter, Emily hadn't taken her eyes off of Luke. He was beginning to become uncomfortable.

"Luke." Ruby was really happy to see him.

"Hey Ruby." Luke walked closer to the bed. He felt uncomfortable. Hospitals had a way of doing that to him.

"I'm sorry I ruined your weekend."

Luke shook his head. "No way. I just want you to feel better."

Lorelai noticed the look on her mother's face, and she knew she was going to hear about it. "Mom, dad this is Luke."

"We met at the hospital last time." Luke told her. "Nice to see you again."

"Always in a hospital." Richard added.

Before it could get even more awkward, a nurse walked into the room. "Wow Ruby. You are the most popular little girl in the whole hospital."

Ruby tried to smile, but she was still feeling weak.

"We would expect nothing less." Lorelai continued to stroke the little girl's hair. "I'm her mother." Lorelai wanted to make sure to introduce herself. "How is she doing?"

"I'm nurse Abbey." She said sweetly. "I know the doctor talked to you." She looked at Emily and Richard.

"Yes." Richard nodded. "He explained that she has strep throat and that keeping her in the hospital is only a precaution. With a little fluids and some medicine she should be as good as new. Maybe even better." Richard reiterated what the doctor had told them all.

"Strep. How did she get strep throat?" Lorelai asked. Her kids didn't usually get sick. They were always pretty healthy, even though their eating habits weren't very good.

"She was probably around someone who had it. It is very easy for kids to get sick. Strep is always going around."

"That's why I have suggested putting them in a bubble." Lorelai joked.

"Mommy."

"It is really the perfect idea."

"I think a lot of rest, fluids, and love will do." Abbey smiled at the sweet little girl.

"We can definitely handle that."

Abbey looked at everyone else. "I think it is best if the resting part starts now. You can all come back in the morning."

"I'm staying." Lorelai told her. That wasn't up for debate.

Nurse Abbey knew that. "Oh of course you can stay." She turned to Luke. "You can stay too. She is allowed to have both parents."

"Oh I'm not." Luke nervously shook his head catching stares from the Gilmores.

"Stay, Luke." Ruby told him. "Pwease."

"I think I should take your brother and sister back home." Luke pointed at Rory and Ryan.

"I want to stay here." Ryan said quickly. He didn't want to leave his little sister alone.

Lorelai shook her head. "You both should go home. We will be fine. I promise. I won't take my eyes off of her all night."

"I want to stay with Grandma and Grandpa." Rory told her mom surprisingly.

"Me too." Ryan agreed, which was even more of a surprise to Lorelai and his grandparents. "It is closer to Ruby."

Lorelai smiled. She really did have the sweetest kids on the planet.

"That sounds like a wonderful idea." Emily agreed. She loved the idea of having her grandchildren close.

"We will all come back in the morning."

"Grandma," Ruby said weakly.

"Yes sweetheart." Emily walked closer to the little girl's bed.

"Could you bring me my favorite dolly? I left it at your house."

"I certainly can." Emily kissed the little girl's forehead.

"Do you remember which one it is?"

"Red dress."

Ruby nodded. "Good job, grandma."

Lorelai looked at her two oldest children. "Tell your sister goodnight."

Rory leaned down and gave Ruby a hug. "I love you kiddo."

"I love you more, Rory."

"Bye Ru Bear." Ryan gave her a wave. "Give them hell."

Lorelai hit his shoulder and gave him a look.

"Sorry." Ryan shrugged.

"Bye, Ry Ry."

He smiled. She hadn't called him that in a long time.

"I'll stay with her if you want to walk them out." Abbey told Lorelai.

Lorelai smiled. "Thanks, Abbey. I will be right back, love bug." She told her daughter.

"Bye kiddo."

"I don't want you to go." Ruby told him with her best pouty face.

"I'll bring you the biggest chocolate milkshake with an extra cherry."

"Even though I got in trouble?"

Luke smiled, as did Lorelai. "We will make an exception this time, but only this time."

Ruby nodded.

Emily and Richard bid their goodbyes, and everyone left Ruby with Abbey.

Lorelai felt relieved. It could have been worse.

"Alright you two." Emily turned towards Ryan and Rory.

"My babies." Lorelai gave them both a big hug.

"Mom." Ryan was embarrassed.

Lorelai finally let them go. "I don't want either one of you to get sick. So until she is feeling better I think you should only come to the waiting room."

"Mom, if we are going to catch it, we probably will. We have already been exposed."

"Besides, I have an iron clad immune system. I've been trying to get sick for years." Ryan joked.

"Just humor. Please. Both of you."

They sighed in unison.

"They only put her in the hospital because grandma insisted."

"She had a high fever. I wanted her to have around the clock attention." Emily knew that she had been right to make a fuss.

"Only the best for a Gilmore." Rory mentioned. She knew that was exactly how her grandmother felt.

"My mother does donate a great amount of money to this hospital." Richard added.

"She could donate to me if she wanted too." Ryan joked.

"Ryan."

"I'm starving." Ryan touched his stomach. "It has been a long night."

"We will get something when we get home." Emily informed him.

"There is a vending machine down the hall. I need something to tide me over for the ride." Ryan sounded like a child.

"It's not that far." Richard thought.

"There can't be anything substantial in a vending machine." Emily didn't see how anyone could voluntarily want to eat out of a vending machine.

"Twinkies." Rory told her. "Crackers. Candy."

"Chips and Chocolate. Lots of chocolate." Ryan smiled widely.

Lorelai smiled. She was proud of their knowledge of vending machine food. She had taught them well.

"I'll take you." Luke spoke up.

"Luke," Rory hugged him. "My hero."

Luke smiled.

"Thanks, hon."

"We will be right back." Luke told her. "I'll get you a candy bar and some coffee."

"Two candy bars." She gave him her best smile. "And you two." She pointed to Rory and Ryan. 'I need another hug."

They both gave her a hug.

"I love you so much."

"Love you." Rory said.

"Yeah, Yeah." Ryan waved her off.

Once they were gone, Lorelai turned to her parents. "Alright. Go ahead. Let me have it." She waited for them to berate her for lying. She knew it was going to be rough. It always was.

* * *

 **Alright, let me know what you thought!**


	56. Killing Me

**Thank you so much for all the reviews, even the critical ones. I really do appreciate you guys, and I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 56: Killing Me**

"Alright. I'm waiting." Lorelai repeated. "Let me have it."

"Excuse me." Emily furrowed her brow.

"What are we supposed to let you have?" Richard asked curiously.

"Oh come on." Lorelai was not falling for their act. "You two are not fooling anyone." She pointed at them. "I know you are mad at me for lying. I'm ready. Let the verbal smack down begin." She held up her hands.

Emily rolled her eyes. "Oh Lorelai. We have nothing to say. Right Richard."

He shrugged. "I can't think of anything."

"You two are killing me." She sighed. "I know you know that I lied about where I was going this weekend. I obviously didn't have a business trip."

"Okay." Emily responded as if she didn't have a care in the world.

"Okay? Okay?" Lorelai was shocked.

"Okay." Richard added.

"Am I in some kind of time warp? Come on. I know you have something to say about the fact that I lied to you. Maybe even about the example I'm setting for my children. Oh and you probably have something to say about Luke. I know you do." She pointed at her mother. "You can say whatever you need to say. I can handle it. I'm as ready as I will ever be."

"Lorelai. Really. You are being absurd." Emily sighed.

"For lying? For dating Luke?"

"No. We don't care that you lied."

"Excuse me?" Lorelai still couldn't believe it. "Since when?"

"Lorelai, you are an adult." Richard reminded her.

"I know that, but I didn't think the two of you knew that. I hid something from you. Mom, you hate that."

"I admit my feelings were hurt when I realized you weren't on a business trip, but that doesn't matter. You are going to do whatever you want to do. You have made that perfectly clear time and time again."

"So you are mad?" Lorelai was trying to wrap her mind around all of this. They were trying to trick her. She knew it.

"No. Lorelai for heaven's sake. We are not mad at you. Again, I repeat, you are an adult."

"This makes no sense to me. I lied to you."

"Yes you did, but it might be a little awkward if we grounded you." Richard joked.

"Lorelai, you should stop worrying about us and get back in there with your daughter."

"We will take Ryan and Rory home with us and come back in the morning."

"Give Ruby another kiss for us."

"Okay." She sighed. "This is so weird."

"Goodnight, Lorelai." Emily waved as she and Richard walked away.

What the hell were they up too? Lorelai thought to herself.

* * *

Emily held onto Richard's hand. "I like that new approach of ours." He smiled.

"It is driving her crazy, and I love it." Emily smiled deviously.

"We should have parented like this a long time ago." They were very proud of themselves.

* * *

Lorelai made her way back into Ruby's room.

Nurse Abbey smiled. "She fell asleep almost immediately."

"She looks so tiny." Lorelai still couldn't believe her baby was sick.

"She's going to be okay. You can breathe again."

"I don't think I'll ever be able to breathe again. Comes with the mom territory." She smiled.

"I'll be right out there, if you need anything."

"Thanks for everything." Lorelai was very appreciative.

Lorelai sat next to Ruby's bed. Her sweet little girl.

"Hey." Luke said softly as he entered the room.

"Hi." She smiled up at him.

"The kids picked out your favorite candy and you some coffee."

"You are the best." She said as he handed her the treats.

"All the kids."

"Well they are great too, but I have to say that. I'm biologically bound."

Luke looked over at Ruby. "She is knocked out."

"Thank goodness." Lorelai smiled at her little girl. "I think she will feel better once she has rested."

"I'm sorry she got sick while we were away." Luke felt guilty.

"Oh. Luke. It isn't your fault. You have nothing to apologize for." Lorelai motioned for him to sit next to her. "Neither one of us had any idea that she was going to get sick. I'm just relieved. When my dad called, I thought my heart was going to fall out of my body. I felt exactly like I did when I saw you carrying Ryan."

"I hate that you had to go through that again." He touched her hand.

"I really think that I should put them in a bubble. I'd feel so much better about things."

Luke laughed. "If only it were that easy."

Lorelai sighed. "So."

"So." Luke gave her a look.

"I think that my parents have been possessed by aliens."

Luke crinkled his brow. He wasn't following.

"They were completely calm, cool, and collected about everything."

"Everything?" he questioned.

"I lied to them. Normally, my mother would have freaked out. She would have lectured me about lying to them and the example I was setting for my children. She would have torn me a part until I was a puddle on the floor." Lorelai admitted. She decided not to tell him how they would have normally reacted to him.

"So how did they respond?" Luke wondered.

She shrugged. "They didn't say anything other than I was an adult, and I can make my own decisions."

"Well that true."

"Yes. Luke. It is true. I know I'm an adult. You know that. But I didn't realize my parents knew that."

"Maybe they have mellowed."

"Ha." Lorelai chuckled. "Emily and Richard. Emily and Richard Gilmore have no idea that the word mellow exist in the English language. They live to judge me. To pick me apart. To tell me what to do. It is the Gilmore way."

"Okay."

"Okay." She pointed at him. "Don't you start that!"

He really was lost. "Lorelai."

"I'm just confused. I know they are doing it to mess with my mind. That has to be what it is."

"I think you need to let it go." Luke kissed her cheek. "Stop worrying so much about what your parents think."

"I don't care what my parents think." She made a disgusted face. "It is the exact opposite."

Luke didn't believe her. It really sounded like she did care what they thought. There was nothing wrong with that. He wished his parents were still around so that he could care about what they thought. "Okay." He decided to agree with her.

"You are just trying to pacify me. That's okay."

"Come on, Lorelai. People can change. Even your parents."

Lorelai sighed.

"I'm sorry this weekend didn't go as planned." Luke told her.

"I know. It feels like the universe is against us." Lorelai squeezed his hand. "But I know this is right. Besides, this is the important part, you know. You being here for me. It means the world to me." She leaned in and gave him a kiss.

Luke smiled. "You mean a lot to me, Lorelai."

Before he could finish, his cell phone ring. Yet another interruption. "I knew I should have thrown this damn thing out a long time ago." He sighed as he looked at the caller I.D. "It's probably Jess."

"Go ahead. I'll be right here."

"Hello." Luke walked into the hallway.

Lorelai opened the chocolate bar the kids had picked for her and then took a sip of coffee. She was exhausted but knew that she wouldn't be getting much sleep until her little girl was home.

A few minutes later, Luke walked back into the room.

"Was it Jess?"

Luke shook his head. "It was Sookie. She and Jackson went to check on him, and he wasn't home. They checked with Caesar, and he admitted that Jess left the diner hours ago." Luke sighed. "You were right. I shouldn't have left him at home by himself. So stupid."

"No. Luke. You can't jump to conclusions. Go home. Talk to Jess. Maybe he has a good reason for not being home."

"Lorelai. How can you be so calm? You were the one that didn't want me to leave at home alone."

"Yes. That's true. But you have got to give him the benefit of the doubt. Don't storm in the apartment guns a blazing." Lorelai smiled. "Go and talk to him."

"What about you and Ruby?"

"We will be fine. You can come back tomorrow." She kissed him. "I promise. We will be okay. Go deal with Jess."

"Okay."

"Listen to him, Luke."

"Okay."

"Okay." She smiled.

"Try to get some sleep."

Lorelai nodded.

"Goodnight, Lorelai."

"Goodnight, Luke." She felt extremely lucky, and she knew that they would have their moment eventually. She felt hopeful for their future, and she hoped that feeling never went away.

* * *

Ryan was lying in his bed thinking about the events of the day. It really felt like two days all crammed into one. Needless to say he had not had any time to study, but he would deal with that tomorrow. His main worry was why Rory hadn't told their mom about Chilton. The only reason he could think of was Dean. Nothing else made sense to him, but he decided not to say anything to Rory. He thought it might be better to talk to Dean.

"Ryan."

He turned his attention to the door where Rory was peaking in. "Hi."

"Can I come in?"

Ryan nodded. "Sure."

Rory walked slowly into the room and sat on the edge of Ryan's bed.

"What's wrong?" He could tell by the look on her face that something was on her mind.

Rory shook her head. "Ruby really scared me. I had no idea she was actually getting sick. She told me she had a headache. I should have known something was wrong. She never complains about feeling bad."

"This isn't your fault, Rory."

"I feel like a bad sister."

"You are the best sister." Ryan rubbed her shoulder. "You really are."

"I doubt Ruby thinks so."

"Ruby thinks you are the coolest person in the world."

Rory wasn't so sure.

"Well next to me. She has to think that I'm the coolest because I'm her big brother."

Rory rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

"I'm trying to make you feel better."

"It's working." She admitted.

"Do you want to sleep in here tonight?"

"I thought you hated when I got in bed with you."

Ryan shook his head. "I only made you think that. Come on." He made room for her.

Rory got into bed with her brother. "Remember when I used to sneak in bed with you after dad came home and he and mom got into a fight."

"Yeah then we would get into a fight. I would blame mom, and you would blame dad." Ryan remembered.

"Well dad was usually the one that started the fight." Rory reminded him.

"I know that now." Ryan sighed. "I never thought that I would be happy that they were divorced."

"Mom seems really happy now."

Ryan nodded. "Yeah. Luke is a good guy."

"I hate that their weekend was ruined."

"They will have other weekends."

Rory smiled. "Thanks again for letting me sleep in here."

"Anytime, Rory." Ryan smiled. "Just don't tell anyone about it. I wouldn't want to ruin my street cred."

"Right. We wouldn't want that to happen." Rory laughed.

* * *

Luke was now sitting at his kitchen table, patiently waiting for Jess to return home. He had decided to take Lorelai's advice. He was going to be calm, cool, and collected. Maybe that was the secret to parenting.

Finally, the door opened and Jess walked in.

"Jess." Luke spoke quietly.

"Oh damn." Jess jumped. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I live here."

"You are supposed to be with Lorelai." Jess said as he tried to catch his breath. "Camping. You are supposed to be camping."

"Something came up. We had to come home." Luke told his nephew. "I was surprised that you weren't here. I thought we talked about this before I left. I trusted you Jess."

"I just went for a walk." Jess lied.

Luke shook his head. "Don't lie to me Jess. I know you have been gone most of the day. So I want you to sit down and tell me the truth."

Jess sighed.

"Sit." Luke said again as he pointed to the chair.

Jess did as he was told. "Uncle Luke."

"Just remember, Jess, I know you pretty well. I will be able to tell if you are lying. I want you to tell me the truth. Where were you?"

Jess knew his uncle was not going to be happy when he found out where he was. He would probably freak out. "I."

"It is going to be worse if you don't tell me the truth." Luke warned. "Remember that."

"I went out."

"Out? Out where?"

"To an open mic night."

Luke nodded. "Aren't those usually in bars?" He wasn't born yesterday.

"They can be in coffee shops."

"I'm guessing this one wasn't." Luke was beginning to catch on. He stood up and sniffed Jess.

"What are you doing?" Jess rolled his eyes. This was weird.

"Smelling you."

"Yeah. I can see that. Why?"

Luke walked back to his seat. "You don't smell like you have been drinking."

"I wasn't drinking."

"But you were in a bar." Luke already knew the answer. He was trying to remain calm.

Jess nodded. "Yes. I was in a bar."

"How did you get into a bar?"

Jess shrugged.

"Come on."

"They don't really card there." Jess told him. It was the truth. "The bouncer is kind of old."

"I want the name and number of this bar."

"Uncle Luke. They might let minors in, but they don't serve alcohol. I swear. Please don't call. Don't get the bouncer in trouble. He is a nice old man." Jess pleaded with his uncle.

"So what did you do in this bar?"

"I just listened to open mic night. I needed to get out of Stars Hollow. I needed a break." Jess was honest with his uncle.

Luke nodded. He understood that. "Jess."

"Uncle Luke. You are really overprotective."

"I am not." Luke defended himself.

"Yes you are. It's like you are afraid that I am going to turn into my mom."

"That's not true."

"I thought we were being honest with each other." Jess turned the tables on his uncle. "I know you are scared it could happen, but I don't want to end up like my mom."

"I want to protect you." Luke admitted. It was the truth. He knew it was his job to keep Jess safe and keep him on the right path. "I don't want you making the same mistakes that your mom made."

"I don't want that either." Jess had seen his mom mess up too many times to count. He didn't want that life. "I know I shouldn't have left here after you told me to stay. I'm sorry for that. But I didn't get into trouble. Sometimes you just need a break."

"I get that."

"You do."

"Yes. I get it." Luke stood up. "I don't care if they don't serve you alcohol. You are not allowed to go to a bar. Any bar. Is that understood?"

Jess nodded.

"Alright. Let's go to bed."

Jess was surprised. "Wait a minute. That's it."

Luke nodded. "Is there supposed to be more?"

"Um well not that I want to give you any ideas, but are you going to ground me?" Jess wondered. He was probably shooting himself in the foot.

"Not this time."

Jess was really surprised.

"But I don't ever want to hear that you went to a bar again, at least not while you are living under my roof."

"I got it."

"Good. Now let's get to bed. You are going to help me open the diner in the morning."

Jess smiled. There it was. A little punishment.

Luke smiled back.

"Are you going to tell me what happened with Lorelai?"

"Nope. Good night Jess."

"Good night, Uncle Luke."

That had actually gone better than Luke had imagined.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought! I'm sorry for any grammatical mistakes. There probably were a few in this chapter.**


	57. Do it Twice

**I am so glad that you guys liked the Luke and Jess scene. I wasn't sure about how it was going to turn out, but I was happy with it. I've decided to go ahead and post the chapter. I do not have the next chapter written, but I will post as soon as possible. Thanks again for all the support. You all are the best. I am so appreciative of each of you.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 57: Do it Twice**

A few days had passed since Ruby's stay in the hospital. Lorelai had been able to take her home the next day, and she was finally back at school. Lorelai had stayed home with her a few days, and she was actually missing her little girl. It was nice to have Ruby cuddles.

She had only seen Luke a few times since their failed weekend. He had brought food over, but her attention had been on Ruby. She still felt bad that they hadn't had any real alone time. And she wasn't the only one. Luke was beginning to feel like it was never going to happen.

"I still can't believe it." Sookie said as she sat down in Michel's seat.

"What are you doing out here?" Michel glared at her. "You are not supposed to come out of the kitchen. That's the way I prefer it. Makes my life a little easier."

Sookie rolled her eyes. "Aren't you supposed to be in the dining room entertaining the group of businessmen?" She shot back.

"Yes. Yes he is." Lorelai said as she took her place behind the desk.

Michel was now the one rolling his eyes. "I am the only person in this place that actually does any work." Michel said as he walked around the counter and headed to the dining room.

Both Sookie and Lorelai shook their heads. "What can't you believe?" Lorelai asked.

"That you and Luke haven't you know yet." Sookie was distraught. "What are you waiting for?"

Lorelai sighed. They had been through all of this before. "Sookie we wanted too but I think the universe is against us."

"You have to fight against the universe. You have to take things into your own hands."

"Don't you need to cook?" Lorelai threw that question out there. She was tired of talking about this.

"Lorelai. I'm trying to help you here." Sookie stood up. "You and Luke are the real thing."

"If we are the real thing, then I have nothing to worry about. Everything will work out."

"Sometimes you just have to intervene."

"What are you two talking about?" Mia asked as she made her way behind the desk.

"Nothing." Lorelai said quickly.

"I'm trying to convince Lorelai to go for it with Luke. She needs to kick the universe in the ass, and take control of her life."

Lorelai just shook her head. She had never had a friend quiet like Sookie. "Mia please tell her to stay out of it. Luke and I will be just fine."

"I can't." Mia admitted.

Lorelai looked at her with surprise. So did Sookie.

"I agree with Sookie on this one."

"You do." Both women said in unison.

Mia nodded. "Yes. I think you should go for it."

"What do you think I should do? Rush over there and throw myself at him?"

Both women gave her a look.

"That's what you guys think that I should do." Lorelai had never been one for throwing herself at men, but Luke was different. She really cared about him.

"You should take a chance." Sookie told her. "I am pretty sure that Luke wouldn't object. He is a man after all, and he cares about you."

"She is right." Mia patted Lorelai on the back. "Just go for it."

"Mia. I can't believe this is coming from you." She looked at Sookie. "You I would expect this from."

"I'm just trying to look out for you."

"I've got to work. I've already been off for a few days."

"You can take a lunch break."

"Mia."

"Go. Lorelai. Just do it."

"She means that literally."

Lorelai and Mia both gave Sookie a look. "Thanks, Sookie."

"Anything for you, Lorelai."

Lorelai looked at both women. Maybe they were right. Maybe she should just go for it. The kids were at school, and her boss didn't seem to mind. "I'll be back." She told them as she walked around the front desk.

"Take your time." Mia smiled.

"Do it twice! You are already behind." Sookie jumped up and down. "Now I can cook with ease."

"Sookie. You just won't do."

Sookie smiled. "Thanks for having my back on this. She never listens to me."

"Oh Sookie." Mia smiled. She was going to miss her girls when she moved. They made every day better, and she really did hope that Lorelai got her happy ending with Luke. They both deserved it.

* * *

Ryan was sitting outside one of the classrooms waiting on Jess. He finally appeared. "What was that about?"

"She asked me about private school again." Jess rolled his eyes. He did not want to go to a different school. Stars Hollow was enough. "I thought if I started paying attention in school, she would drop it, but it actually made it worse. She thinks I have so much potential, and that private school would bring that potential out."

"So are you going to go?"

"Nope." Jess shook his head and threw the pamphlets she had given away, again. "I hate school. I think it is such a waste of time. I'm not going to some nerd fest."

"Rory is going to Chilton." Ryan said before he remembered that she still hadn't decided. The siblings hadn't talked about it. He was convinced it was because of Dean. He had plans to talk to Dean later. He had waited long enough to bring it up.

"Rory is kind of a nerd." Jess told him with a guilty face. "She is great. I don't mean to talk about your sister, but she is the kind of person that belongs in a private school. Not me."

"What about Luke? I thought you were telling each other everything now. Especially since he didn't ground you for going to a bar. Very cool by the way." Ryan remembered. Jess had told him everything that happened. Ryan had a feeling his mom had coached Luke a little bit. The conversation had sounded a lot like ones he had with his mom before. She was always pretty understanding and listened before she went crazy.

"True. But I don't think he needs to know about this." Jess sat down on the bench in the hallway. Ryan joined him. "He would think it was a good idea. He is always trying to push me to do better."

"Parents have a weird way of wanting the best for us."

"Sometimes he takes this guardianship too seriously." Jess shook his head. "I just need him to provide the basic essentials for my life. I can handle the rest."

Ryan didn't say anything. He had sometimes thought that same thing, but he knew that would never happen in his life. And it wouldn't happen in Jess' either.

"He'll never find out. It isn't like he runs into my teachers. Surprisingly they don't go to the diner. I figure it will stay that way." Jess had it all figured out. "I'll stay at Stars Hollow High for the next three years and get by. That's all I need to do."

"Okay. Well at least you will be here with me." Ryan was happy about that. "So what about Scarlett? Have you talked to her?"

Jess shook his head. "Nope. I gave her my number, and she knows that my uncle owns the diner. I thought maybe she would stop by, but she hasn't."

"She is busy doing high school girl things. She is seventeen. She is probably about to go to college. It is pretty epic that she likes you."

"She thinks I'm seventeen." Jess was sure that he wouldn't have a chance with a girl like Scarlett, if she knew the truth about his age.

"Fifteen and seventeen isn't really that big of an age difference." Ryan noted.

"It is a huge age difference when the girl is seventeen. She wants college boys."

"You don't know that."

Jess nodded. "I do know it."

"Why didn't you get her number?"

"I don't know. I wasn't thinking. She said she would stop by the diner."

"Then she probably will."

Jess shook his head. "I don't know." He sighed. "I wish I could go back to the bar, but my uncle would kill me."

"That would be a horrible site."

"Cool and calm Luke would be out the window. Grumpy, I'm the boss Luke will be back." Jess knew that to be true. Luke really could be bossy, but most of the time it was okay. At least Jess knew that he cared.

Jess looked over at Ryan and could tell that his demeanor had changed. He looked down the hall to see Rory and Dean talking. "What's up with that?" Jess asked.

"What are you talking about?" He focused his attention back on Jess.

Jess pointed at Ryan's face. "You look pissed. I thought you like Dean."

"I did like Dean."

"Did?" Jess questioned.

"Yeah. It's nothing. I'll figure it out."

"We can talk about it?"

Ryan shook his head. "No. It's something I need to talk to Dean about." It was time. Rory had to go to Chilton. It always been the plan, and he couldn't imagine how their mom would feel if she didn't go.

"Whatever man. I'm here if you need me."

"I know." Ryan smiled. It was nice to have a friend like Jess. Jess thought the same thing about Ryan.

* * *

Across the hall, Rory closed her locker. "I can walk you to class." Dean really liked walking Rory to class. It made him feel special.

"Sure." Rory also liked when he walked her to class. It was nice having Dean around. She had never thought about having a boyfriend before, but Dean was better than she ever could imagine. He was so nice, and she knew that he cared about her.

"So have you talked to your mom yet?" Dean asked as they headed towards class.

Rory stopped walking. "What are you talking about?" She kind of already knew but was hoping he wouldn't bring it up. She didn't really want to talk about it. It was her decision to make. She was the one that it effected the most.

"Chilton. Have you told her you got in?"

"No." Rory began walking again. Dean followed her.

"You need to tell her. She would be so proud."

"How do you know?" Rory snapped, which wasn't her intentions.

"Because I know your mom, and I know how you talk about her. She really would throw you a party." Dean said. "I think it is such a great opportunity for you." He stopped her from walking. "You and I will be fine. We don't have to go to the same school to be in a relationship."

"I know that."

"Then I hope I'm not the reason that you don't want to go. I want to be the reason that you do go." Dean told her. "You are the smartest girl at this school, and you should be somewhere that allows you to shine." He kissed her forehead.

"Thanks, Dean." Rory smiled. "We should really get to class."

"Yeah. Let's go." Dean hoped that he had gotten through to her. He couldn't let her pass up an opportunity for greatness.

* * *

Lorelai couldn't believe that she was standing outside of the diner. She couldn't believe that she had listened to Sookie. And even more she couldn't believe that Mia was on Sookie's side. It seemed that everyone was worried about her sex life.

She took a breath before opening the diner door and hearing the little tiny bell ring, like it did every time the door opened. They wasn't much of crowd. She was relieved about that. Lorelai found herself scanning the diner for Luke. To her surprise she didn't see him.

"Hey Caesar." She said as she made her way to the counter, and he walked out of the back. "Where's Luke?"

"Oh he is upstairs, Lorelai. He asked me to watch the place. You can tell him it hasn't burned down yet."

She smiled. "I'll be sure to tell him. Thanks, Caesar." This was actually working out in her favor. He was already upstairs, so she wouldn't have to entice him with her hair flip and sexy smile. She made her way up the stairs. She was unbelievable nervous but also excited at the same time. This was finally going to happen. They were going to be together. It would be her first real adult relationship, excluding Christopher of course. But she wasn't concerned about Christopher. He was the last thing on her mind. All she could think about was Luke and what was about to happen when she opened the apartment door.

She opened the door without knocking. She didn't have to knock. She thought if she knocked she might lose her nerve. So as she walked in she began unbuttoning her shirt. "Luke. Oh Luke. I have a surprise for you." Although as she rounded the counter, she was the one that was surprised.

"Lorelai." Luke said, shocked to see her.

He was standing next to a beautiful woman with long, curly hair, and he was holding a baby. A site she had never seen before.

This must be Rachel, and that baby must be Luke's.

She had not been expecting this when she walked through the apartment door.

Damn Universe.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought! It seems there is always something getting in the way.**


	58. Finally

**So I know some of you are getting tired of the back and forth, but I hope this chapter does not disappoint.**

 **Thanks again for all the support.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 58: Finally**

Lorelai nervously stood in front of Luke and the not so mystery woman and baby. Lorelai knew the woman had to be Rachel. She could feel it. "Hi. I am sorry for busting in like this."

"Lorelai." Luke said nervously. He wasn't sure what she was thinking, or what she was doing there in the middle of the day with her shirt unbuttoned.

Lorelai looked down at her unbuttoned shirt. "Oh God. You are probably wondering why my shirt is opened like this. There is a good explanation for that." She snapped her fingers trying to figure out how to explain the shirt. "Stain. It's a stain. I have a stain on my shirt, and I know you have a stain remover pen up here. Caesar told me. I didn't just know." She looks down at her shirt. "You know what, the stain is gone. That's miraculous. All I had to do was walk up the stairs and unbutton my shirt, and embarrass myself in front of the two of you. Oh well three if I'm counting the little guy. We should count him. He is adorable. This might scar him. It has scarred me. That's for sure." She starts to button her shirt back. Something she should have done immediately. "I should go. I'm sorry for interrupting."

"Lorelai, wait." He sighed as he walked closer to her.

"It's okay. I get it. Bye Luke." She looks at the woman. "Bye um you. Really cute baby." She looks at Luke. "Congratulations." She then winced. Why would she tell him congratulations? She felt like such an idiot. "I mean never mind." With all of that said, she walked out of the apartment. She sighed. That did not go how she had planned.

Back inside the apartment. "So that was Lorelai?" The woman said.

Luke nodded.

"She seems great. You were right about the fast talking. She is a rambler. I'm not sure how you keep up."

"It is a lot of work." Luke noted. "But she is worth it." He said with ease, as if it just rolled off the tip of his tongue without even having to think about it.

"I'll take him." She pointed to the baby. Luke handed him over. "I think he likes Uncle Luke."

"Uncle Luke." Luke smirked and shook his head.

"Well. I don't know what other term would be appropriate."

"Luke."

"Lukey." She joked.

Luke shook his head quickly. "Luke is fine."

"Okay." She sat the little boy in his stroller. "There you go. Play with your panda." She turned back to Luke. "He loves that thing."

Luke nodded. He was still trying to take it all in. His mind still focused on Lorelai, and how awkward it had been.

"You should probably go tell Lorelai that you aren't Artie's father. I'm pretty sure she thinks that you are."

"You think so?" Luke hoped that wasn't the case.

She nodded and hit his shoulder. "Oh my God Luke, you have changed in so many ways since we were together, but you are still as clueless when it comes to women. She was coming up here to you know." Luke just looked at her. "Sex. She wanted to have sex with you. That was the face of a woman ready to get it on."

"Rachel." Luke said. "We haven't. Lorelai and I. We have been taking it slow." Or rather everything in their lives had forced them to take things slow.

"Luke go to her." Rachel smiled. "I haven't ever seen you this happy. Makes me a little sad that I could never be that for you." She admitted.

"You didn't come back here so that the two of us would…"

"No." Rachel interrupted. "I know that boat sailed for us long ago." She chuckled. "It's ironic you know. I left this town because I never wanted to settle down, and now I have an eight month old."

"Lorelai was right. He is really cute." Luke looked down at the kid. When Rachel had first come into the diner he had been shocked. He never expected Rachel to ever settle down and have a kid. He was even more shocked when he found out that the father was not in the picture. Evidently she had never been in a relationship with Artie's father. They had met on one of her trips around the world. They slept together a couple of times when Rachel became pregnant. She didn't tell him that she was pregnant. It wasn't like they would ever work out anyways. It was better for her to do it by herself. At least that is what she had told Luke.

"He has really changed me." She smiled. "I never thought it was possible, but I don't think I would have it any other way."

"How long are you going to be here?"

"I rented an apartment for the next six months."

"Wow." Luke was not expecting that. "You are staying in Stars Hollow?"

Rachel nodded. "Artie needs a home. A real home. I can't travel around the world with a baby. I need some help. From this town."

"I never thought that I would hear you say that."

"I never thought I would say it." She touched his shoulder. "But things have a weird way of working out. Which means you need to go. Go find Lorelai. Explain all of this to her."

Luke smiled. Rachel was right. "Okay."

"We will be around. You haven't seen the last of us."

"Thanks, Rachel. Nice to meet you Artie." He waved at the little guy.

Rachel smiled. The Luke that had just left the apartment was not the Luke she remembered. He had a happiness surrounding him that she had never seen before. She had a feeling that had everything to do with Lorelai and her children. She had lost her shot with him, and she was surprisingly okay with that.

* * *

"Hey Dean." Ryan said as he caught Dean walking down the hallway without Rory attached to his hip.

"Oh hey Ryan." Dean smiled. "What's up?" He stopped walking.

"We need to talk." Ryan said with a stern tone, that didn't go unnoticed by Dean. He thought it was a little weird.

"Okay. You sound serious."

"This is serious." His tone didn't break.

Dean raised an eyebrow. Ryan was being extremely weird. "Okay. What is this about?"

"Rory."

"Alright." Dean liked talking about Rory.

"I know you are the reason why Rory doesn't want to go to Chilton." Ryan started. "You are probably worried that she'll go off to private school and find someone smarter and better dressed than you."

"No." Dean shook his head. He never thought that.

"Rory likes you. So you just need to get over your fear of her breaking up with you."

"What are you talking about?" Dean was becoming frustrated.

"You have to convince her that Chilton is the best place for her. It is part of the plan. It has always been a part of her plan. It is in on her list. Rory makes a list for everything, and Chilton is on one of her lists." Ryan informed him.

"I have tried to talk to Rory."

"Yeah. You probably tried to convince her not to go. To stay here with you."

"No exact opposite. I told her to go. But Rory is going to do what she wants to do."

"Until you came into the picture, she always wanted to go to Chilton and then to Harvard or Yale or Princeton."

"You are way off on this." Dean rolled his eyes. This was getting old really quickly.

"Rory is meant for great things, and as her brother it is my job to make sure that people like you don't screw it up for her."

"Ryan, you need to back off." He started to walk again.

"I'm not done." Ryan grabbed his shoulder. "You need to fix things."

"Hey." Rory walked up to the two boys. "What's going on?"

Dean shrugged away from Ryan. "Why don't you ask your brother? He seems to know everything."

Rory looked at Ryan as Dean stormed off. "Care to explain what that was about?"

"I think you are the one that needs to explain." Ryan snapped back.

"What are you talking about?"

Ryan sighed. "Chilton."

Rory's face immediately displayed her guilty conscious.

"You don't want to go to Chilton."

Rory shook her head. "I never said that." She was trying to figure out how he even knew about it.

"You haven't told mom." Ryan still couldn't believe she had kept it from their mom. That wasn't like Rory at all. "You tell mom everything."

"This is none of your business." Rory snapped back at him, sounding a lot like a five year old.

"It is my business." Ryan argued. "You better tell mom, or I will." He said as he stormed off.

Rory sighed. She felt bad for many reasons. She hated keeping things from her mom, and she also hated fighting with her brother.

"Hey." Lane said as she approached Rory. "What was that all about?" She had witnessed the little fight.

Rory shrugged. It seemed that she was going to have to figure out what she was going to do about Chilton sooner rather than later.

* * *

Lorelai walked into house. She couldn't go back to the Inn and face Sookie and Mia. Besides, she couldn't even think clearly. All she could see in her mind was the baby Luke had been holding.

Why couldn't things ever be easy? Maybe the baby wouldn't change things for them? Lorelai shook her head. Who the hell was she kidding? It would definitely change things. Children always changed things.

Before she could get deeper into her thought, there was a knock at the door. She opened the door and was surprised to see Luke standing in front of her. "Luke."

Before she could say anything else, Luke wrapped his arms around her and kissed her passionately, completely taking her by surprise. He shut the door as they were still kissing.

"Wait Luke." Lorelai pulled away slowly. She knew they needed to talk.

"I don't want to wait anymore. We have waited long enough." He told her.

"But the woman and the baby."

"The woman is Rachel." Luke told her.

"I knew it." Lorelai shook her head. "I knew it. She was exactly how I pictured she would be."

"The baby isn't mine." Luke knew that was what she was waiting to hear.

"Really?" Lorelai couldn't help but smile.

"I don't want to be with Rachel. I want to be with you, Lorelai Gilmore." He touched her face gently. "I want you to know that this thing we are doing here, I'm in. I'm all in."

She smiled happily. It was everything that she wanted to hear. "Me too. I'm in." She wanted him to know that. "And I'm also sorry about earlier. I acted like a crazy person."

Luke laughed. "Doesn't matter. I like the craziness." He leaned in and kissed her again. "The kids are at school." He stated.

"And the universe can suck it." Lorelai giggled.

"You lead the way. I'll follow."

Lorelai took his hand and led him upstairs. They were finally going to have their moment.

* * *

"Dean." Rory tried to catch up to Dean as he quickly walked out of school. He had successfully avoided her the rest of the day. "Hold on."

Dean stopped walking.

"I'm sorry about Ryan. He can be a real jerk sometime."

"This isn't about Ryan, Rory." Dean told her. "This is about you. I've told you several times that you should go to Chilton."

"I know that."

"But your brother doesn't. He thinks all of this is my fault. I don't want to hold you back." Dean explained to her. "I'm excited for you."

"I'm not sure that I want to go to Chilton."

"You always have been before." Dean sighed. "That's what your brother said. Why have you changed your mind?"

"I don't know." Rory admitted.

"You should go to Chilton." Dean touched her shoulder. "Or do whatever that you want to do because you are special, Rory." He kissed her cheek. "I've got to go. I told my mom I would be home right after school."

"Dean. I don't want you to be mad at me." Rory stopped him.

"I'm not mad Rory. I promise." He said as he walked away. "Talk to your mom." He told her. It was something he had told her before, and this time she hoped that she listened.

* * *

Jess walked into the diner and scanned the place for his uncle. He didn't see him. Jess smiled. If he didn't see his uncle, that meant he didn't have to work in the diner. He could go upstairs and goof off for a while.

"Hey."

He turned around to see Scarlett standing behind him. He was surprised to see her but really happy about it. "Hey. What are you doing here?"

"I was hoping to get that cup of coffee you promised."

"Awesome." He pointed and she followed him. He poured her a cup of coffee, and they walked over to one of the empty tables.

"You're uncle doesn't care if you hang out with me for a while?" Scarlett asked as they sat down.

Jess shook his head. "He isn't here. So I think that we are good." He smiled at her. She was prettier than he remembered. "I thought you would have stopped by sooner."

"I have to be honest with you." Scarlett started. Jess moved nervously. "I'm not seventeen." She admitted. Jess smiled. "I know you probably don't want to hang out with me now."

"How old are you?"

"Fifteen." Scarlett looked down. She felt bad about lying to him. "I haven't been able to come by the last few days because my mom found out I've been going to that bar. She freaked out. The only reason I'm here today is because I told her I was going to the library."

Jess couldn't stop smiling. "You really look seventeen."

"I'm not. I wanted you to know that, and I understand that you probably don't want to have anything to do with me now."

Jess shook his head. "I lied too."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm fifteen." Jess admitted. "I lied to you too."

Scarlett laughed. "Seriously?"

"Yep. I'll be sixteen soon." Jess informed her.

"I can't believe we both lied."

"But we told the truth." Jess thought that was pretty good.

"I guess that's a start." Scarlett smiled at him. "I still can't believe that my mom found out about the bar. I've been going to that place forever. She is usually so cool about stuff, but not this time."

"Complete role reversal with my uncle. He was totally cool about me being in a bar." Jess was still surprised about that.

"Good for you." She laughed. "Once my mom is off my case, do you want to hang out some more?"

Jess nodded. "Sure."

"Sure? Are you trying to play it cool so I'll think that you are cool?" Scarlett asked, not afraid to push his buttons.

Jess shrugged. "I don't know. I guess you'll just have to get to know me."

"Okay." Scarlett smiled at him.

"Are you ever going to show me what is in that notebook of yours?"

Scarlett shook her head. "Nope. This notebook is for my eyes only."

"Alright." Jess couldn't believe that he was excited to see where things were going to go with Scarlett. She seemed really nice and interesting. Maybe things were beginning to turn around for him. He might be able to convince her to show him her book eventually.

* * *

Luke and Lorelai were lying in her bed, wrapped in each other's arms. Luke was holding her hand in his. "Wow." That was all he could say.

Lorelai had the biggest smile on her face. "I'm glad that is the word you used. It would be really awkward if you had chosen a different one."

"You are perfect." He wiped away a strand of her hair that had fallen into her face.

"It was well worth the wait. If I knew that it was going to be that good, I would have jumped you the first time we met." Lorelai joked.

"I doubt that. I seem to remember that you hated me the first time that we met." Luke would never forget the fiery woman he had met that day. She had been real pissed off, which made him extremely angry.

"It was a really bad first impression." Lorelai hated that she had behaved that way. She had jumped to conclusions about a lot of things, and she had always promised herself that she wouldn't do that. "I'm really glad that you gave me a second chance."

"Me too."

She leaned in and kissed him. "We have to promise to make time to do this more often."

"That is easier said than done."

"No. I mean it. If I have to lock the kids in the basement, then I'll do it because this is important. We need this alone time."

Luke chuckled. "You don't have a basement."

"You know what I mean. I know that we both have a lot going on, but it is important that we have alone time. I don't care what the damn universe thinks."

"I thought it hated us." Luke laughed. "I'm glad to see that we were able to intervene." He leaned in and kissed her again, each kiss becoming more and more passionate.

"This is so nice."

"But the kids will be home soon."

"Yes and Babette." Lorelai smiled.

"Babette?"

"She asked if she could pick Ruby up today. She has missed her since she has been sick, and supposedly I have been hogging her." Lorelai laughed. She really did love Babette.

"I don't want to go." Luke said, sounding a lot like a child.

"You don't have to worry. We will do this again. I'm going to make sure of it." She ran her finger down his face and then kissed his chest.

"And again." Luke kissed her neck. "And again."

Lorelai found herself lost in his touch. She had never felt this way in her entire life, and she never wanted to stop.

They continued to kiss for a few more minutes until a cell phone began to ring. Lorelai reached for her phone. "It's not mine."

"Oh." Luke jumped out of bed to find his pants to find the ringing cellphone. It hardly ever rang, but when it did it was usually important. "Luke Danes." He answered.

Lorelai watched as Luke talked on the phone. She was so happy. She couldn't remember ever being this happy. Just watching him talk on the phone, made her happy.

"Thank you for calling. I will talk to him." Luke hung up the phone.

"That sounded serious." Lorelai said as she positioned herself on the side of the bed.

"That was Jess' teacher. She thinks he should go to a private school."

"Really?"

Luke nodded. "Yeah. I was surprised too. She said that she talked to him weeks ago about it, but he never said anything to me. He needs to get the application in as soon as possible."

"Which school?"

"Chil…" Luke couldn't even remember.

"Chilton. That's where Rory is going to go." Lorelai told him. "She submitted her application months ago." Lorelai started to think about it. "She should already know if she got in."

"It's Rory. Of course she got in." Luke thought as he put his pants back on.

"Right. But we haven't received anything in the mail. I think I'm going to call." She grabbed her clothes and kissed his forehead.

"I should probably go talk to Jess. There might be some yelling."

"I thought you were trying this new thing."

"Oh I am, but I was talking about him." Luke smiled. "He is going to be really mad at me when I make him fill out the applications."

Lorelai kissed him. "Rory can probably help him. She is really good at those kind of things. She always knows exactly what to say."

Lorelai took his hand and led him downstairs.

"You should come by the diner tonight." Luke told her.

"I think that can be arranged." Lorelai kissed him again. "This was very nice."

"Yes it was." Luke wrapped his arms around her. "I'll see you later."

"Bye, Luke. Good luck with Jess." She told him as she closed the door. Lorelai smiled as she remembered everything that had happened. It had been a really great day. She made her way over to the phone so that she could call Chilton. She couldn't remember the number. She knew that Rory kept everything related to Chilton in the top of her desk drawer.

Lorelai opened the drawer and noticed a Chilton envelope at the top. She opened it and her stomach turned. It was an acceptance letter.

Why hadn't Rory told her about Chilton?

* * *

 **I hope that you liked this chapter. When I first started this story I never expected that it would take them that long to have alone time, but it kind of just kept happening that way. Anyways, I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter. I'm glad they finally got together too.**


	59. No Good Reason

**Thanks you guys. You really are the best readers. I am really glad that you were all excited that our favorite couple finally had some alone time.**

 **I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 59: No Good Reason**

Lorelai was patiently sitting at the kitchen table trying to figure out what she was going to say to Rory. This was big. Rory got into Chilton. It should have been something that they celebrated, but instead Rory hadn't even told her about it. Lorelai didn't want to jump to any conclusions or make any assumptions. She wanted to hear Rory out. If she had hidden it from her, then there had to be a good reason. Rory had probably created a pro-con list regarding Chilton, and for some reason the con side had come out on top. Normally Rory would have asked Lorelai to help make the list and that was the part that made Lorelai nervous.

She was taken out of her thoughts when she heard the loud voices of her children coming from outside. "I can't believe you did that today." Rory yelled. She was fuming. "It really is none of your business."

"It's mom's business." Ryan snapped back. "You shouldn't be keeping things from her."

"You keep things from her." Rory glared at him.

"You aren't me." Ryan yelled at her. "You are better than that."

"Oh please." Rory rolled her eyes. "You had no right to talk to Dean. I thought you liked Dean."

"I like him as long as he isn't ruining your future." Ryan explained to her. "I thought he was the reason you didn't want to go to Chilton, but he said that he told you to go. So my question Rory, is why don't you want to go?"

Rory shook her head. "I don't want to talk about this."

"You need to talk about it. You don't want to wait until it is too late, and you are asking customers if they want fries with that."

"Are you kidding me?" Rory realized what happened. "You talked to Paris." Those had been the same words Paris had thrown in her face. "Don't lie to me. Because that statement is way too dramatic for you. It is more Paris' style and you know it. She came to you, didn't she?"

Ryan shook his head. "That's none of your business." He used her words against her. He didn't want her to know that he had been ease dropping on her. That would only make her madder.

"Just leave it alone, Ryan." Rory yelled louder.

"Hey." Lorelai said sternly as she opened the door. "What is going on out here?"

"Nothing." Rory said quickly, glaring at her brother.

"Don't tell me nothing. You two are yelling at each other." Lorelai said with her hands on her hips. "Tell me what is going on?" She had a feeling that she already knew what they were discussing.

"Rory," Ryan looked at his sister. "Do you want to take this one?"

"You don't have to be such a jerk."

"Rory, what is going on?" Lorelai asked again, sternly but calmly. She had never seen Rory so mad.

"Mom. I should tell you that I um…I um…I got…Um…" Rory couldn't find the right words. It was like it was all stuck on the tip of her tongue.

"Spit it out already." Ryan groaned.

"Ryan." Lorelai gave him a look. "Rory. Go ahead." She was relieved that her daughter was about to tell her about Chilton.

"I got into Chilton." Rory finally spit it out. It felt good to say it out loud to her mom. She looked at her mom's face to see how mad she was, but Rory knew she wasn't mad. "You already knew?" Rory asked her mother and then looked at her brother. "You gave me such a hard time, but you had already told her." She accused her brother.

"I didn't tell her." Ryan said innocently.

"He didn't tell me." Lorelai informed her daughter. "I found the letter."

"You were snooping?" Rory was surprised.

"No." Lorelai shook her head. "Of course not. I didn't know there was any reason for me to snoop. I was looking for the number to call Chilton because I was wondering why we hadn't heard anything."

"Mom." Rory felt guilty. She should have told her mom the truth from the beginning.

"Let's go inside." Lorelai took her daughter's hand, and Ryan followed them inside. "Rory, do you not want to go to Chilton?"

"It is because of her boyfriend." Ryan slid that in there. He wanted his mom to know his thoughts on the matter.

"Shut up." Rory yelled, taking both of them by surprise.

"Rory, hon." Lorelai touched her daughter's shoulder. Rory was not one to yell let alone tell someone to shut up. "Ryan." She looked at her son. "Why don't you go upstairs to your room and start your homework?"

"But mom." Ryan started to complain.

"Please." Lorelai didn't want to argue with him.

"You have to make her go to Chilton." Ryan looked at Rory.

"Ryan." Lorelai groaned.

"This is too big of an opportunity for you to throw it away because of some guy who isn't even worthy of you." Ryan wanted Rory to understand that.

Rory looked away from her brother.

"Ryan, I will take all of that under consideration. Please go upstairs."

"Fine." Ryan sighed. "But."

"Go." Lorelai pointed.

"Alright." Ryan walked upstairs. He now wished he had a bedroom downstairs so that he could listen to their conversation. He wanted to make sure that his mom made Rory go to Chilton.

Lorelai looked at her daughter. Rory sighed and walked past her mom and into her bedroom. She sat on her bed. She wanted to be comfortable while she had this conversation.

"Hon, we have to talk about this." Lorelai sat next to her daughter.

"I wish we didn't." Rory admitted.

"Well unfortunately for you I'm a big talker. Sorry kid." She touched her shoulder. "Talk to me."

Rory looked down at the floor and focused on a tiny white spec. "Are you mad at me?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No. Hon. I'm not mad. I'm just a little confused."

"Me too." Rory said sadly. She had never felt this conflicted about anything before.

"Why are you confused?"

"You are right. I have always wanted to go to Chilton, but I really like it here."

"Rory, we aren't moving." Lorelai smiled at her daughter. This conversation was confusing her even more than she thought it would. "You are still going to be a resident of Stars Hollow. Going to Chilton isn't going to change that." Lorelai stroked Rory's hair like she had done so many times before. "You have wanted to go to Chilton since before you could talk. I think you said Chi Chi before you said mama." Lorelai laughed. "That's not true, but if you knew about Chilton you would have. I bought you a Harvard sweatshirt when you were two. Then your grandfather bought you one from Yale. Neither fit, but you used them as blankets and sometimes we used the Yale one as a makeshift diaper. Your grandpa loved that one." Lorelai laughed as she remembered those days. Rory had been so cute in those sweatshirts.

"Mom."

"I'm not saying that you have to go to Chilton to get into one of those schools. Stars Hollow High is a great school. I've been really impressed with the curriculum and the teachers. It is not about that. You are going to have to give me a really reason if you want to change the plan." Lorelai told her.

Rory shrugged. "I don't know if I have a good reason." She admitted to her mother.

"Dean." Lorelai threw that out there. She knew it was a definite possibility. Rory took after her mother in many ways.

"You have been listening to Ryan." Rory quipped.

"He was pretty adamant about his feelings on the matter."

"Yeah. He was. Especially when he confronted Dean." Rory still wasn't happy about that.

"Is he right?" Lorelai asked. "Is this about Dean?"

"No." Rory shook her head. "Yes." She sighed. "No."

"Do you mean to say maybe?" Lorelai joked.

"I didn't realize how much I was going to like Stars Hollow."

"I though you got over that before you applied to Chilton. It isn't like we are moving back to Hartford."

"I know." Rory really didn't know what to do, and she hated that feeling.

"Where is it?" Lorelai asked.

"Where is what?" Rory looked at her mom.

"The pro-con list. I know you have one." Lorelai was sure of that. Rory had never met a situation that a pro-con list couldn't solve. "Give it up. Where is it?" Lorelai looked around.

Rory smiled. Her mom knew her so well. She reached into her bedside table drawer and pulled out her notebook. Rory turned the page to her Chilton page. Lorelai took a look at the list and gave Rory a look.

"I know the pros are winning." Rory knew her mom would be confused.

"Then why aren't we celebrating?" Lorelai asked as she touched Rory's shoulder.

"I don't know." Rory shrugged. It was the truth, and she didn't want to talk about it.

"Rory, you are the one that always makes sense in this family." Lorelai smiled trying to figure things out. "But you are really confusing me here."

"It isn't really Dean. He has already promised that we will be okay, and I believe him." She looked at her mom.

"Well good. Then you aren't exactly like me."

"What if I fail?" Rory asked. "We have always had this plan, but what if I'm not good enough. I don't want to let you down."

Lorelai shook her head and gently touched Rory's face. "Oh hon. You could never let me down. I am so proud of you. You have no reason to be afraid. You can't worry about the what ifs. We have talked about this before."

Rory nodded. "I know. Stars Hollow High is easy."

"Well you have never done anything just because it was easy. You like a challenge. You always have." Lorelai had always been so proud of how independent and smart Rory was.

Rory sighed and looked away from her mother. "We don't have the money." She finally admitted after her all her other excuses had seemingly failed.

"What?" Lorelai felt her heart drop. Rory was not supposed to know about that.

Rory hadn't told anyone that she knew about her dad and the money incident. "I didn't meant to snoop." Rory started. "I saw some papers on the table. It was for our savings account. It was practically empty. I know Ryan is really mad at dad. I kind of put it all together. He took our money didn't he?" She finally asked.

Lorelai hated this. She wanted to protect her kids from all the bad things in the world. "You are a really smart kid." She should have known that Rory would figure it out. She was a pretty perceptive kid.

Rory shook her head. "I can't believe he did that to us, but I also can't believe that you didn't tell me. You should have told me. You have to trust that I can handle things, even if they are bad and disappointing. I'm not a little kid anymore."

"I don't think you were ever a little kid." Lorelai smiled at her beautiful daughter.

"Maybe for a month." Rory joked.

"I know I should have told you." Lorelai admitted. "I didn't want it to affect your decision."

"I can't go to Chilton if we can't afford it." Rory rationalized.

"Well you are wrong." Lorelai said quickly. "We can afford it."

"How? I thought that savings account was our money for school."

"I have other accounts, and we sold the house. We can totally afford it."

"Really?" Rory was surprised.

"Yes. You have nothing to worry about. If you want to go to Chilton then you should go."

Rory smiled. She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She was so relieved.

Lorelai felt guilty. She didn't like lying to Rory. It was true that she had sold their house, but she had used most of the money to pay for other expenses, including a large down payment on their current home. Unfortunately, she had also put some of the money in the account Christopher had robbed. Lorelai had some money, but not enough to pay for all of Rory's Chilton tuition. That didn't matter to her. She would figure it out. She always did where her kids were concerned.

Rory leaned in and hugged her mom. "Thanks, mom."

"Oh Rory." Lorelai held her close. "Just know that you can always talk to me about anything. No matter what."

"You remember that too."

Lorelai smiled as she hugged her smart girl. She would make sure that everything worked out.

* * *

Luke walked upstairs to his apartment. He had a feeling that this conversation was not going to go well. He opened the door and found Jess sitting on the couch reading. Normal position for him.

"Have you done your homework?" Luke asked, already knowing the answer.

Jess looked up from his book and shrugged. "I'll get to it after I get to a stopping place."

"Um no." Luke shook his head. "I need you to come to the table."

"Why?"

"Because I have something for you to work on." He had gone to the school and picked up the application for Jess to fill out.

Jess grumpily put his book down and got up from the couch and walked to the table. "What's up?"

"Here." Luke handed him the application.

Jess looked at the documents. "What do you want me to do with this?"

"Fill it out."

"No way." Jess threw them on the table.

"You don't have a choice." Luke meant it.

"I thought you were taking a new approach to this guardian thing. We would figure things out together."

"I am trying, but this is different. When it come to your future, this is important." Luke hoped that he understood that. "I spoke with your teacher when I was at the school. She thinks you have great potential. She thinks that if you apply yourself, you can do whatever you want to do. She also thinks that Chilton can provide you with a world of opportunities." Luke explained. "She thinks you are bored and that if you stay at Stars Hollow High you will slip away and fall behind."

Jess shook his head. He couldn't believe his teacher went behind his back. "If I'm not applying myself now, what makes her think that I'm going to apply myself at Chilton?"

"I will make sure of it. That is my job."

"Uncle Luke." Jess began to plead with his uncle. "Please don't make me do this. I'll do better at Stars Hollow High. I promise. I won't fall behind. I'll be an upstanding student. I'll be nerdier than Rory."

Luke couldn't help but let out a chuckle at that last statement. But that didn't change his mind. "You will thank me later."

"I highly doubt that." Jess rolled his eyes. He couldn't believe this was happening. "How can we afford a place like this anyway?" He asked pointing down at the application.

"Your grandfather. He left you money for school. I've been adding to it ever since you came to live with me."

"Isn't that for college?"

"If you do well at Chilton, then you'll probably get a scholarship."

"You don't know if that will happen."

"You don't know that it won't." Luke argued back.

"You are really going to force me to go to a school I don't want to go to?" Jess hoped to make him feel guilty about the whole thing.

Luke sighed. "I'll make you deal."

"What kind of deal?" Jess was curious.

"You apply. You get in. Try it out for a year. If you hate it then you can come back to Stars Hollow after the year."

"I'm going to have to ride the bus."

Luke nodded. "If you do well then I will consider buying you a car after you turn sixteen."

"Seriously?" Jess was now intrigued.

"It would be a fixer upper. Something we could work on together. And it would only be to get you to school and back."

"So let me get this straight. You are bribing me with a car?" Jess kind of thought it was funny.

"Call it what you want to call it, but this is important. Your teacher believes in you. I will believe in you. I think it is time you start believing in yourself."

Jess thought for a moment and then sat down at the table. "Fine we will do it your way."

"Sounds like the best idea you have ever had." Luke patted Jess' shoulder. He was proud of his nephew, even if he did have to bribe him a little. Truth be told he had always planned on getting him a vehicle after he turned sixteen. It was something he and his dad had done together, and it was something he wanted to do with Jess.

* * *

Lorelai tapped lightly on Ryan's bedroom and entered as he said come in. He was sitting at his desk actually doing his homework.

"Wow. I didn't think you'd actually being doing your homework." She said as she walked further into his bedroom.

"If you makes you feel any better, I heard you coming up the stairs." Ryan smiled.

"And you jumped from your bed."

"And sat at my desk."

Lorelai smiled knowingly. "Nice." She sat on the edge of his bed. "I perfected that skill. You definitely get it from me."

"I doubt you would have told grandma though."

"Oh no. Deny. Deny. Deny. That was always my strategy."

Ryan laughed as he shook his head. "I'll use that next time."

"Don't even think about it. Because I'm a professional, I'll always know."

"Good to know." Ryan sighed and shifted his chair so that he was facing his mom. "You are going to make her go to Chilton. You have too."

"Ryan."

"Mom." Ryan folded his arms. "Come on. If she doesn't go, her whole life will be different."

"Whole life." Lorelai gave him a look.

"You know it is true. You have to play your mom card. You would play it with me if I were making a life altering mistake."

Lorelai couldn't help but laugh. He was so dramatic, and it was really adorable to see him so protective of Rory's future. "This is Rory's decision."

"Oh mom. Come on. You have got to be kidding me."

"I'm not kidding. It is my decision that it is her decision whether or not she goes to Chilton."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "That's ridiculous. So if I don't want to go to Stars Hollow High, I don't have to?" He turned the tables on her.

"Sure."

"Mom. Seriously."

"Yes. But you have to go to school somewhere, because last time I checked it is the law. So pick a school. Any school. Unless you want to be homeschooled. I could probably get Michel to be your teacher. He likes to crack the whip."

Ryan should have known it was too good to be true. "I think I'll stick to Stars Hollow High."

"You could always go to Chilton." Lorelai told him as she stood up and kissed the top of his head. "With your sister." She smiled as she walked to the door, knowing Ryan was catching on to what she had said.

"She's going." He stood up.

"Yep." Lorelai smiled. "That's what she decided."

"You knew that the whole time and didn't tell me."

She nodded. "I like the element of surprise."

"You just like to play with my mind."

"That too."

Ryan was happy. He knew that his sister belonged at Chilton. He was glad she came to that decision on her own.

"Sugah." They heard Babette's voice calling from downstairs.

"Got to love Babette." Lorelai said as she walked out of Ryan's bedroom. He followed behind her.

Downstairs, Babette and Ruby were standing in the living room. Ruby was wearing a tutu.

"There is my girl." Lorelai said as she made her way down the stairs. "What's with the tutu?" She asked pointing to her daughter. "Did you have a costume change at school?"

"No mommy. Ms. Patty gave it to me. Watch." She started spinning around. "I'm gonna be a dancer." Ruby said cheerfully.

Ryan snorted. Ruby didn't know it, but Gilmore girls were not coordinated. Rory had tried dance once and failed. Miserably. Probably the only thing that she had ever failed at.

"Sweetie. When was this decided?" She looked up at Babette.

"I took her to Patty's and this little honey bee has a knack for the music. Patty said so." Babette told the woman. "She is just the cutest little thing."

"I agree, but I don't know about dancing. I was never a dancer. Rory wasn't either."

"It should be her decision mom." Ryan said as he walked into the kitchen.

Lorelai hit the back of his shoulder as he exited the room. "Well hon if you want to be a dancer then you should go for it."

Ruby smiled. "Yay." She hugged her mommy. "Watch." She started twirling again.

Lorelai smiled. It was really cute.

"Patty said she had a spot for her this summer."

"Sounds like a plan. Thanks, Babette."

"Anytime sugah. Don't hog her anymore." Babette leaned down and hugged the twirling little girl. "Bye, doll."

"Bye Babette. I love you."

"I love you too, doll baby." Babette walked to the door. "Bye a Ryan." She yelled.

"See you Babette." He yelled back from the kitchen.

"You look really cute in that tutu." Lorelai told her daughter. "Why don't you come over here and sit down with me." Lorelai grabbed her daughter playfully and sat down on the couch.

"Am I in trouble?" Ruby asked.

"Oh no, sweetie." Lorelai hugged her tightly. "I missed you today." It had been the first time they had been a part since Ruby got sick. "I need my Ruby cuddles."

"I need mommy cuddles too." Ruby wrapped her arms around her mom. "I love you so, so much."

"I love you too, sweet girl. Did you have a good day at school?"

Ruby nodded. "I was really good too. All my friends missed me."

"I bet they did." Lorelai held onto her daughter.

"Thanks for letting me try dancing." Ruby smiled up at her mom. "I think I'm going to be really good at it. Ms. Patty said so."

"Well if Ms. Patty said so then it has to be true."

"See. Watch." Ruby stood up and started twirling again. Lorelai smiled happily as she watched her daughter dance. She was a happy mommy.

* * *

Ryan walked into Rory's room. The door was cracked, and he didn't think he had to knock. "Hey."

"Hey." Rory was sitting at her desk. He could tell she was looking through a Chilton pamphlet.

"So Chilton." He pointed.

Rory nodded. "Yep."

"I'm sorry that I was a jerk to Dean today."

"It's okay. We all have jerk moments."

Ryan sat beside her. "I think you are going to be glad that you went to Chilton."

"Who is going to keep you straight at school?"

"I'll manage." Ryan surprisingly hugged his sister. "I'm really proud of you Rory."

Rory smiled. "Thanks, Ryan." She was lucky to have him as a brother, and she knew as long as they had each other everything was going to be okay.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought! I'll update soon!**


	60. Happy Birthday, Lorelai

**This is an extra long chapter. Little bit of a time jump! I hope you guys enjoy! Happy reading!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 60: Happy Birthday, Lorelai**

A few weeks had passed in Stars Hollow. The end of the school year was fast approaching. Rory was busy studying. She wanted to make sure she finished out the year on top. Ryan was busy avoiding studying at all cost, but that was nothing new. Lorelai still couldn't believe how quickly their first year in Stars Hollow had flown by. It seemed like just yesterday they had entered the town not knowing what was going to happen, or if it was a good decision to move. She was fairly certain that she had made the right decision.

Tonight everyone was taking a break to celebrate Lorelai's birthday. Luke had closed down the diner and prepared all of Lorelai's favorite foods. She had spent the whole week being pampered and doted on by her loved ones.

Sookie and Mia had taken her for a spa day. Sookie had been thrilled to hear that Lorelai and Luke had finally been together. She had danced happily for a week. Mia had to warn her to get back to work a few times.

The kids had served her breakfast in bed and supplied her with all the mallomar bars, poptarts, and coffee her heart could desire.

Luke had taken her out to dinner, just the two of them, and later they had gone back to his apartment for a private birthday celebration. Fortunately for them, Jess had spent the night at the Gilmore house, giving the couple a little more alone time together. Of course Lorelai had been home by eleven. The kids usually waited up for her to make sure she made her curfew. Lorelai had found them passed out in front of the television with junk food surrounding them. It was a proud mommy moment. They had learned from the best.

She had also had dinner with her parents. It hadn't been horrible. Ruby had really enjoyed herself. And she knew it was good for the kids to see their grandparents. Besides, Lorelai had managed not to get in an argument with her mother, and her father had given her an envelope full of money. It was his go to gift for any occasion.

This was the first year she was actually happy to turn another year older. She felt good about herself and her life. She was confident this was going to be the best year yet.

Now she was happily celebrating with her kids, boyfriend, and close friends.

Luke walked out of the back with a plate of hamburgers. He smiled when he saw Lorelai sitting by herself, staring at her kids and their current love interests. Jess and Scarlett were also sitting with the teens. He wasn't sure how he felt about that relationship. Scarlett was nice, but he really wanted Jess to focus on himself, and his school work. They were still waiting to see if Jess had gotten into Chilton. The waiting was killing Luke. He wanted this for Jess. Luke felt like it was important for the boy's future.

And sweet Ruby was dancing for Ms. Patty and Babette. The little girl hadn't stopped dancing since Lorelai had signed her up for classes. She had become obsessed, and Lorelai didn't think she was half bad. Ms. Patty said she was destined to be a star.

Luke sat the burgers down and joined his girl. "What are you doing over here by yourself? You are supposed to be partying." He sat beside her.

"I'm taking it all in."

"And what's that?"

"I'm another year older and as I'm getting older so are my kids. I can't believe they are old enough to be in relationships."

"Can't we forbid them all from dating until their thirty?"

Lorelai smiled. "It doesn't work. Trust me."

Luke touched her knee. "Are you having fun?"

Lorelai nodded. "I am having the best time. Thanks for doing all of this for me."

"It wasn't all me. The kids helped a whole lot."

"Really? You were able to pry Rory away from her books." Lorelai couldn't believe her daughter wasn't studying at that very moment. "And Ryan away from his girlfriend."

Luke smiled. "Rory said you were more important than studying, especially since it is your birthday."

"Wow. My kid has her priorities straight." Lorelai smiled. "And Ryan?"

"Well I threatened him." Luke laughed.

She clapped her hands together and bowed to him. "The student surpasses the master. Very impressed."

"I've got another surprise for you. Actually two more surprises."

"Ooh yay. I love surprises." Lorelai danced with her shoulders. "But you have already done so much for me."

"Well one surprise was Ruby's idea and the other one is all me."

"What is your idea?"

"Mia has agreed to let us stay at the Inn tonight."

"Really?" Lorelai was surprised. "What about the kids?"

"They are staying too."

"That doesn't seem all that romantic." Lorelai raised her eyebrow.

"Sookie is going to keep Ruby, and Mia has promised to keep an eye on the teenagers. Their room will be far away from ours."

Lorelai leaned in and kissed him. "You have thought of everything."

"I just want to make sure that you know how special you are."

"You remind me every single day." She squeezed his hand.

"So do you want your other surprise?" Luke asked.

"Please tell me it isn't Ruby dancing? I love her. I'm happy she found something she likes so much, but she has been dancing nonstop since I let her start dancing, and she has been driving me crazy." Lorelai confirmed what Luke already knew. "1, 2, 3. 1, 2, 3. Watch mommy. Watch." Lorelai mimicked her daughter. "Those words are haunting me in my sleep."

He laughed. "No dancing but Ruby is the mastermind behind this surprise."

A really big smile crossed her face. "What about Rory and Ryan?"

"Nope. They have no idea. Ruby came to me a few months ago."

"Months ago?" Lorelai was surprised. "So it definitely isn't dancing?"

Luke shook his head. "That girl of yours is pretty special."

"Yeah. She is pretty great." Lorelai smiled trying to think of what the surprise could be. "So. Let's bring my special girl over here so I can get my surprise."

"Hey Ruby." Luke called for the girl. She stopped dancing and ran over to her mom and Luke.

"Is it time?" She asked. She was excited about her mom's present. Luke had really done an amazing job, and she knew her mom was going to be happy.

"I think so."

"Wahoo." Ruby jumped up and down. "Ryan, Jess get over here." Ruby yelled at the boys. They looked over at the little girl. Luke motioned for them to listen to her, so they did.

"What's up?" Ryan said.

"Luke needs your help." Ruby answered. "Come on." She took both of their hands, and led them into the back. Luke followed.

"What's going on?" Rory asked her mom.

Lorelai shrugged happily. "A surprise for me."

"I thought we had already given you everything." Rory tried to remember if she had forgotten about something. "Yeah. I'm pretty sure we have."

"Evidentially not." Lorelai pointed to Ruby who walked out of the back.

"Okay, mommy. Close your eyes."

"Okay." Lorelai agreed and closed her eyes tightly.

All the guests turned to the little girl.

"Alright boys. Bring it out." Ruby instructed.

Ryan, Jess, and Luke walked out carrying a beautiful dollhouse, with a big bow on top, that looked almost identical to the one that Lorelai had as a child.

Ruby ran to her mommy. "Okay mommy. Open your eyes." The boys sat the dollhouse down in front of the woman.

Lorelai did as her daughter told her to do and couldn't believe what she was seeing. "Is that…That's my dollhouse." Lorelai stood up. "But how?" She was confused. She knew there was no way that her mother would have given that dollhouse to anyone. Lorelai had asked for it once before, and Emily made up some excuse of how it needed to stay at the Gilmore mansion.

As she looked closer, she could tell that it was a little different than her dollhouse. "Where did this come from?" She looked at Luke and then at Ruby.

Luke pulled a picture out of his pocket that Ruby had given him.

"Where did you get this?" She asked Luke, and he pointed to her youngest child. "Ruby."

"I wanted you to have your dollhouse. You deserve it mommy."

Lorelai smiled with tears in her eyes. "This is a new dollhouse." She realized that it couldn't be the original one.

"Luke built it." Ruby told her mother. "He did a really good job."

"He did an amazing job." Lorelai looked up at her boyfriend. "Wow." She stood up from Ruby and walked over to the dollhouse. She was mesmerized. It was absolutely perfect.

"This is great." Rory told her sister and Luke. "You did an awesome job." She told Luke and then looked at Ruby. "I can't believe you kept it a secret."

"I wanted it to be a surprise." Ruby told her sister. "Do you like it?"

"Oh baby doll, I love it." Lorelai hugged her daughter tight. "It is the best gift."

"Hey." Ryan exclaimed. "Here I thought my fuzzy socks were going to be the best gift you got all year." He joked.

Lorelai ruffled his hair, still fighting back her tears. "Your socks are a close second. You know I love a sock with fuzzy dice on the back."

"Only the best for you mom." Ryan laughed. He had been pretty proud of his gift.

Lorelai continued to stare at the dollhouse.

"We even have dollies we can play with." Ruby told her. "We each have our own." The young girl showed her mother. They had gotten little dolls to represent each family member. Even Luke and Jess had their own dolls.

"I love the one with a baseball cap." Lorelai looked over at Luke.

While Lorelai continue to admire her gift, Patty, Babette, and Mia sat in the corner. "I know someone who is getting some tonight." Babette cackled.

"Oh Babette."

"Oh Mia you know with a gift like that, Lorelai isn't going to let Luke sleep for weeks. I'm surprised she could even contain herself. If Morey got me something like that, I would be all over him like white on rice." Babette playfully hit Mia's arm.

Mia chuckled and shook her head.

"None of my husband's ever did anything that nice for me." Patty told them. "If they had I might not have been married so many times."

Mia continued to shake her head. Those two women were something else. Before Mia could say anything, Sookie walked out of the back. She looked a little pale. "Sookie, darling, are you okay?"

Sookie nodded unconvincingly. "I'm fine."

"You don't look fine sugah."

Sookie shook her head and sat next to Mia. "I think I ate something that didn't agree with me. Actually, nothing has really agreed with me lately. It's like anything I eat makes me sick."

"How long has this been going on?" Mia asked.

"Oh you know a couple of weeks I guess."

"Sookie." Mia touched the young girl on the shoulder.

"What?"

"You did this a couple of years ago."

"Oh Mia. I was pregnant then."

Mia gave the girl a knowing look. Sookie stopped when she realized what Mia was saying. "Oh. I don't know. That can't be it. I…We…It…We…I….Maybe…Well…We…Did…Oh…Yeah….That was about a month ago…Oh…Oh Mia…Oh Jackson." Sookie rambled off as she realized she was most likely pregnant.

"I kind of suspected you were pregnant a few days ago."

"How so?"

"The food tasted horrible."

"Mia. Bite your tongue."

"We didn't tell you. We didn't want to hurt your feelings."

Sookie stood up. "I've got to tell Jackson." He wasn't there. He had to work late. "He is going to be so happy." Sookie walked over to Lorelai who was playing with the dolls and dollhouse Ruby and Luke had given her. "Having fun."

"A blast." Lorelai put down the doll and stood up to face Sookie. "Are you leaving?"

"I need to go find Jackson."

"Is something wrong?"

"No. No. Everything is perfect." Sookie was excited about being pregnant. She and Jackson both wanted more kids.

"What is it?" Lorelai could tell something was going on with her friend. Sookie was horrible with secrets.

"I'm pregnant."

"I knew it." Lorelai squealed as she hugged her friend. "I am so happy for you."

Everyone clapped.

"You better go tell Jackson before the whole town knows."

Sookie nodded and then looked at Ruby. "Alright dumpling we got to go."

Ruby looked up from the dollhouse. "Okay. But can I take my dolly?"

"Sure sweetie. Go get your overnight bag." Lorelai told her.

"Happy Birthday, mommy. I love you more than the moon and the sky." Ruby wrapped her arms around her mommy. Lorelai took it all in and hoped the little girl would stay her baby forever.

"Back at ya, kid."

Ruby ran off to get her bag but not before hugging Luke. He had really become one of her favorite people on the planet.

Sookie walked to one of the other tables and grabbed Davey who had been coloring the whole time.

"I am so happy for you, Sook."

"Thanks, Lorelai. And happy birthday. I hope this year is the best one yet."

"I am one hundred percent sure that it will be." Lorelai said confidently. She wasn't going to let anything ruin her year.

* * *

Later that night, Lorelai and Luke were happily lying in a bed at the Independence Inn, wrapped in each other's arms. Luke slowly stroked Lorelai's hair.

"This was really nice." Lorelai finally broke the silence. "I can't believe you thought of this." She had been pleasantly surprised by the gesture.

"I wanted to make your birthday special."

"You definitely did that." Lorelai rubbed his chest softly. "The dollhouse." Lorelai looked up at him. "That was the nicest gift anyone has ever given me."

"It was all Ruby's idea."

"You did such a wonderful job. It looks almost identical to the one I had as a child. I can't believe you were able to recreate based only off a picture."

Luke smiled. He was pretty proud of himself. He was glad that he could do something so special for her and for Ruby.

"You know." Lorelai smiled widely. "I think Ruby might be my smartest child."

"I thought Rory held that title."

Lorelai shook her head and continued to rub his chest. "I think Ruby may have her beat. She has been begging me to get that dollhouse from my parent's house for years."

"I figured it was really for her."

"Oh yes. But the two of us will have hours of fun, and I have you to thank for that." Lorelai pushed herself closer to Luke's lips and slowly kissed him. "One day she won't want to have anything to do with me, so thank you for giving me such a special gift." She continued to kiss him in between her words.

"I don't think you will ever have to worry about your kids not wanting to have something to do with you. You are the coolest mom on the planet. They are pretty lucky." Luke meant every word. All kids needed a mom like Lorelai Gilmore.

"And now you're going to get lucky again." She laughed and kissed him passionately.

* * *

In another room at the Inn, Ryan, Jess, and Rory were watching a movie. Jess and Ryan were in one bed and Rory was taking a whole bed to herself. She liked it that way.

Mia had provided them with a stack of movies and enough snacks to tide them over the entire night. She was across the hall for the night and told them if they made a lot of noise she would be able to hear them, and she didn't want to be able to hear them. Mia was the nicest person around, but could be strict if needed.

Rory felt like she was going to fall asleep at any minute. She had been so busy all week and studying really had taken over her life.

A knock at the door caused them all to jump. None of them were expecting anyone.

"It is probably Mia." Rory said sleepily. "Ryan you should get it."

"I don't want to get it. I'm tired too."

"I'm not getting it." Rory stood her ground.

"Oh jeez." Jess stood up. "I'll get it." Jess opened the door to reveal Grace. She was carrying an overnight bag. "Grace."

"Grace." Ryan said with surprise in his voice, hopping off of the bed quickly.

"Now you'll get up." Rory said as she sat up in the bed.

"Hi." She said softly.

Jess moved away from the door and let Ryan get closer to his girlfriend. "What are you doing here?" He wasn't complaining, but he was curious.

"I wanted to spend the night too."

"What?" Rory said first.

"I thought it would be fun for all of us to stay together." She smiled at Ryan and looked over at Rory and Jess, hoping for approval.

"That wasn't part of the plan." Rory informed her. She liked Grace, but Rory didn't want to get into any troubled. And Ryan having his girlfriend spend the night in the same room with him, sounded a lot like trouble to her.

"It's not that big of a deal." Ryan told his sister. "She can sleep in the bed with you."

"She's not supposed to be here." Rory sat on the edge of the bed. "Mom might get mad."

"She won't get mad."

"I want to watch movies and eat junk food." Grace hoped Rory let her stay. The night they had described earlier sounded like a lot of fun.

"I don't know." Rory wasn't sure. Her conscience always got the best of her. "What do you think Jess?"

"I wish I had invited Scarlett. You could have invited Dean."

"You aren't helping." Ryan shot his best friend a look.

"I don't care if you stay." Jess said as he got back into his bed.

"Your parents are okay with this?" Rory wondered.

"Oh yeah." Grace said quickly. "No big deal."

"There aren't enough blankets." Rory made an excuse, any excuse she could think of.

"We can go get her a blanket. I know where they keep the extras." Ryan had an answer for all of Rory's excuses.

"What about mom? Shouldn't we tell her?"

"You really want to interrupt her and Luke?" Ryan made a face. "I'm pretty sure we all know what they are doing. I don't need a visual."

"Ooh Ryan. I don't want to think about that."

"Well then drop it, okay. Rory. Come on." He pleaded with his sister. "It isn't a big deal. We will go get her an extra blanket, and she can sleep in the bed with you."

Rory sighed. She obviously wasn't going to win this battle. "Fine." She gave in and got back in her bed. "I'll make room for you."

"Thanks, Rory." Grace smiled happily.

"We will be back." Ryan told his sister and Jess. "Do you guys need anything?"

Both of them shook their heads no.

As the door shut, Rory looked over at Jess. "This is a horrible idea."

"You said it. Not me."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

Jess shrugged. "Because he is my best friend. Besides if it is okay with her parents then I know it will be okay with your mom."

Rory thought about it. He was probably right. Her mom was all about following the parental code, whatever that might be. Besides, Rory would be watching them like a hawk. Nothing bad could happen with her watchful eye.

"So." Jess said as he made himself comfortable. "I got into Chilton." He hadn't told anyone that yet. He wasn't sure how he felt about it.

"You did?" Rory was excited. At least she would have someone from her Stars Hollow life with her. "That's great news, Jess. You are going to love it."

"I don't know." Jess wasn't sure. "I've never pictured myself at a place like Chilton."

"It's a beautiful place."

Jess shook his head. "It kind of scares the hell out of me."

Rory was surprised that he was admitting that he was scared. She wasn't used to that coming from Jess. "Truth be told, it scares me too." Rory joined him on the bed. "I'm so afraid of screwing everything up. Making everyone disappointed in me."

Jess chuckled. "I don't think that is humanly possible. No one could ever be disappointed in Rory Gilmore."

"That's a lot of pressure, you know." Rory admitted. "But I really think that it will be okay if we are there together. We will have each other."

That did make Jess feel a little better. "I'm not going to want to study all of the time."

"We can study together." Rory hoped to be encouraging. "I bet Luke is thrilled."

Luke was actually the one that had told Rory about Jess applying to Chilton. He had been so excited and proud of his nephew. He had asked Rory to help Jess finish the application, and he had also asked her to watch out for him if he got into Chilton. Of course Rory had promised to do that.

"I have not told him yet." Jess' face dropped. He knew he should have told him immediately, but for some reason he was waiting.

"Really? I think he is going to be excited."

"I know he is going to be excited. I was just trying to figure out how I felt about it." Jess told her. He felt like he could talk to Rory about anything. She had always been such a good friend. "It took me forever to get it together at Stars Hollow. I'm not the warmest person on the planet."

"Oh really. I never would have guessed." Rory joked and Jess gave her a look. "You know what I like about you, Jess?"

"What?"

"That you are your own person. That is so important. You are going to be fine no matter where you go to school." Rory said encouragingly. "And Luke is also going to be proud of you no matter what."

Jess nodded. "I guess you are right."

"I'm definitely right."

"You want to turn the movie back on? I bet those two are downstairs hanging out."

Rory glared. "Of course they are. And sure." Rory walked over to her bed. "Congratulations, Jess. Getting into Chilton is a big deal."

"Thanks, Rory. Congratulations to you too."

* * *

Downstairs, Grace and Ryan grabbed a blanket out of the supply closet. It was a pretty big closet. Plenty of room. "Do you want to stay down here for a while?" Grace asked. "We could just talk."

"You know my sister. She will send the search party."

"Maybe she will fall asleep." Grace smiled. "I was hoping to spend some time with you. Just the two of us."

Ryan smiled nervously. "Sure." He laid the blanket on the ground and grabbed them another one.

Grace kissed him softly and then they both sat down and got comfortable.

Ryan wasn't sure why Grace came, but he was really glad that she did.

* * *

Later, Luke was standing next to the window. Lorelai opened her eyes. She knew she couldn't have been asleep that long. They weren't really worried about sleeping. That had been the last thing on their minds. She reached over and noticed that Luke wasn't in bed beside her. She glanced over at the window and smiled.

She grabbed his shirt off of the floor and slipped it over her head. She slowly walked towards him, rubbing his back when she finally made it to the window.

He looked at her and then back at the window. She could sense that something was wrong. "Hey." She continued to rub his back. "You alright?"

Luke didn't say anything for moment, the longest moment, Lorelai thought. He finally turned to face her. "When was the last time you spoke with Christopher?" Luke asked, completely taking her by surprise.

What kind of question was that? "Why?" That was the first response that came to mind.

Luke didn't answer her question.

"Oh come on. You can't ask me something like that and not expect me to wonder why." She gave him a look. "Especially not after what we just did. Christopher should be the last thing on either of our minds." She could feel herself becoming frustrated with the question the more she thought about it.

Luke walked around her and sat on the edge of the bed. "I should have told you this a few days ago, but I didn't want to ruin your week."

"Told me what." She turned to face him. By the look on his face, he had been thinking about whatever was on his mind for a while, and that made her nervous. "You are making me nervous."

"I'm sorry." Luke looked up at her. "I don't mean to make you nervous."

"Well then you better start talking." Lorelai said, still frustrated.

"Some guys came into the diner a few days ago. They were looking for Christopher."

"Why would anyone come to Stars Hollow looking for Christopher?"

Luke shrugged. He didn't know the answer to that question. "Maybe because of you and the kids."

"What did they want with him?"

Luke didn't know the answer to that question either. He was beginning to think that he should have kept all of this to himself. He shouldn't have worried her. "I don't know. They said a lot of people were looking for him. I don't know what that means either. But Lorelai, they didn't look like very good people."

"What does that mean?" Lorelai was now extremely worried. This was not how she thought they would end the night, technically it was now morning. "They weren't good people. How could you tell?"

Luke didn't know how to explain it. "I…well…When I was younger my uncle got into some trouble. He liked to bet on horses."

"You think this has to do with gambling?" Lorelai interrupted him.

"I have a feeling they weren't looking for him just to hangout and be friends." Luke hated having to tell her, and he felt bad that he hadn't told her sooner. "They said something about a lot of people were looking for him, and if I found him I should give them a call." He pulled a piece of paper out of his wallet.

Lorelai shook her head. This couldn't be happening. "Oh Christopher." She rested her face in the palm of her hands.

"I'm sorry."

"Luke. This isn't your fault." She reassured him as he joined her on the edge of the bed. "I had no idea. I haven't seen him since New Year's." Lorelai was filled with many emotions. "I think I'm going to have to go to my dad on this. Maybe he will be able to find him."

"I think that is a good idea."

Lorelai looked up at Luke with her beautiful blue eyes. "Please don't say anything to the kids. I don't want to get them worried. Maybe it is nothing."

Luke nodded, but he was pretty sure that it wasn't nothing. "I won't say anything. You just tell me what else you need me to do, and I'll do it." He would do anything for her.

"Just hold me."

Luke wrapped his arms around her and hoped to make her feel safe.

"I hope to God he hasn't gotten into something dangerous. I've always known that he has had his issues, but I never thought that he would do something that would have thugs chasing after him."

"I didn't say they were thugs."

"That was implied by the look on your face. Trust me."

"This was the worst time to bring it up. I just couldn't stop think about it."

"There never would have been a good time to bring up, but I'm glad that you told me. I needed to know. I have to make sure that I protect my kids. If Christopher, is in some kind of trouble that effects my kids, even if he isn't around. They are going to be disappointed by their father yet again."

Before Luke can say anything else, there is knock at the door. Luke looks at Lorelai.

"It's probably the kids. They can't stay away from me for one night." Lorelai looked down at what she was wearing.

"Here." Luke stood up and grabbed them both a robe.

"They will never be able to guess what we were doing." Lorelai joked and Luke chuckled as they put on the robes and the knocking continued. "They sure are persistent."

Luke opened the door to see Mia, some man he didn't know, and Rory and Jess. "What's going on?"

"Mia." Lorelai was confused. "Robert." Lorelai remembered the man as Grace's father. They had met briefly when she picked Ryan up one night.

"My daughter snuck off to be with your son, and now we have no idea where they are."

"What?" Lorelai was still trying to wrap her head around it all.

"I'm sorry that we had to bother you, Lorelai." Mia started. "But Ryan wasn't in the room with the other kids."

"They went to get a blanket." Jess finally spoke up.

"I can't believe you aren't watching your children. You have them shacked up in a hotel room."

Before Lorelai can respond, it is Luke who comes to her defense. "We didn't know that your daughter was going to be here. She wasn't supposed to be here. The kids were told to stay in their room for the night. And what I do with my girlfriend is none of your business."

"When you have kids you have to be more responsible."

"Your daughter is the one that snuck out." Lorelai informed him.

"She told us that you said it was okay." Rory wanted everyone to know that. She was pretty mad at Grace for lying and potentially getting her brother into trouble.

"I told my wife it was a bad idea to let her spend time with your son. After all you got pregnant when you were a teenager. You probably don't care if your kids sleep around."

"How dare you?" Lorelai was disgusted.

"I think it is best if you stop talking." Luke told the man.

"Why don't we go check downstairs?" Mia tried to relieve the tension. "I'm sure that is where they are."

Lorelai stopped Rory and Jess. "You two go back to bed, okay."

"Mom." Rory wanted to go.

"Rory," Lorelai said sternly. "Go."

Rory frowned but did as she was told. She knew that her mom wasn't playing around. Jess followed Rory back to their room.

The adults walked downstairs. When Mia opened the door, they found Ryan and Grace asleep on top of the blanket. Both kids were fully dressed, and Lorelai was positive nothing had happened, but she could tell by the look on Robert's face that the truth didn't matter to him. He was furious.

* * *

 **Alright. There it is. Let me know what you thought!**


	61. Punch that Guy

**I feel like I keep opening these author notes with I am sorry, but it is true. I hope to get the next chapter up quicker. I really hope that you all enjoy this chapter.**

 **Thanks again for all the support!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 61: Punch that Guy**

After the debacle with Grace and her father, Lorelai had finished her night in the room with Rory and Ryan, and Luke with Jess. Lorelai had been pretty quiet about how she felt about the incident. The kids were pretty sure that their mom was processing. Robert had been pretty pissed off, and he had not kept quiet about his feelings on the matter. He had yelled at Grace, Ryan, and even Lorelai. Luke had to stepped in several times. There was absolutely no reasoning with that man, and Lorelai didn't even attempt to try.

Now Luke, Lorelai, and Ryan walked into the Gilmore house. Lorelai had sent Rory to pick up Ruby at Sookie's, and Luke told Jess to meet him at home.

Lorelai placed her bag on the ground, and looked at her son. "Go upstairs. I'll be up in a minute." She instructed.

"Mom." Ryan began.

"Ryan." Lorelai said sternly. "I'll be up in a minute."

"Fine." Ryan started to walk away, but then turned back towards his mom and Luke. "Before you decide my punishment, you have to know that I thought Grace had permission to be there. She lied to me too." Ryan hoped that would help his case. He knew his mom must be mad if she was being so quiet.

"Duly noted." Lorelai said as she nodded upstairs. "Go."

Ryan frowned and did as he was told. They heard his door shut.

"How much trouble is he in?" Luke asked as he followed her into the kitchen.

"He's not in trouble." She said simply as she grabbed the coffee from the cabinet. She could definitely use a cup. "I would go to Luke's but Luke is here." She smiled.

"The coffee is the same."

"Nope. You wouldn't understand because you don't enjoy coffee, but it is definitely different when Caesar makes it. Trust me."

"I'll take your word for it." Luke smiled as he pointed upstairs. "You aren't mad at Ryan? You just sent him to his room."

"I know." Lorelai had a devious smile on her face. "I want him to think about it for minute."

"You seemed really mad." Luke couldn't let it go.

"Oh I am mad." She turned to face him. "But not at Ryan. I'm mad at Grace for lying to her parents and sneaking out. That was totally not cool, and it is going to take me a little bit of time before I can trust her again." She took a breath. "And don't let me start on her dad." She shook her finger. "He was a class A jackass."

"I want to punch that guy in the face." Luke balled his fist and punched his hand. "He was a real dick."

"I would have gladly let you punch him. I actually thought you were, there for a minute." Lorelai remembered how upset that he got. It was actually kind of hot. She liked overprotective Luke. "You know, I get that he was mad at her, but that was not the way for him to get through to her. Kids do not respond well to tyrant behavior. Trust me. I've been there done that and have the maternity t-shirt shoved in the back of my closet." She poured herself a cup of coffee. "I didn't like how he was blaming Ryan." She walked into the living room, Luke following closely behind her. She sat on the couch to drink her coffee. Luke sat beside her. "I believe Ryan. I don't think that he knew that she snuck out. He has lied to me before. He had his honest face on for sure. So I can't be mad at him." She pointed at him. "Although, he probably should have told someone that she was there. He knew how I would feel about them sharing a room without an adult present."

"I'm kind of glad they didn't come to our room." Luke had a big smile on his face.

Lorelai started smiling and nodded. She knew exactly what he meant. "That is one image they never need to have in their heads. I'd like them to think we were just watching TV."

"It was a really good show." Luke kissed her. "I could watch it all the time."

"Maybe next time we wont be interrupted by a crazy lunatic."

"I'll tell you one thing, he better not ever talk to you the way he did this morning. I really will punch him. You will probably have to get me out of jail." He meant it. Robert had infuriated him. He didn't like to think of anyone ever talking to Lorelai that way.

"I really like that you are so protective of us. It is very adorable." She kissed him.

"I care about you. All of you." He wanted her to know that. "You are very important to me, Lorelai."

His words gave her chills. The good kind.

Lorelai was about to tell him how important he was to her when his cell phone rang.

"Damn." He mumbled. "I got to get this." He stood up and answered the phone. "Hello. Hey Caesar. Yeah. I know. I know what I said. Yeah. I will be there soon. Okay." Luke hung up the phone.

"Caesar?"

"I told him that I would be there during the breakfast rush."

"It is the breakfast rush now." Lorelai looked at the clock.

"Yep." Luke sighed. "I got to go." He walked back over to where she was now standing. "I don't want to go."

"I don't want you to go." Lorelai kissed his lips gently. "I can't even begin to thank you for one of the best birthdays I have ever had."

Now Luke was kissing her. As they were kissing, Luke thought about bringing up Christopher, but he decided it was best to let Lorelai bring it up in her own time.

"I'll see you later."

"You better believe it." She kissed him again and then walked him to the door. "Have fun with Caesar." She yelled at him as he made his way to the truck.

After Luke left, Lorelai picked up the phone and dialed her father's number. He answered right away. "Hey dad. It's Lorelai. Yes I know you only have one daughter. So no one else would be calling you dad. Right." Lorelai shook her head. "Listen, dad, can you meet with me later today, just the two of us? Oh great. The Hartford coffee shop at one. See you then, dad." Lorelai hung up the phone. She was positive that her dad would be able to help her figure out what was going on with Christopher. She didn't want her mom to know about it. It was hard enough that she was going to have to tell her dad.

She sighed. She didn't have any other options.

Now it was time to go talk to her son. She made her way up the stairs and knocked on his door. She heard a 'Come in mom,' and opened the door.

"Hey kid."

"Listen mom." Ryan stood up. "I know that you are mad at me, and you have every right to be mad at me. I know I should have told you that Grace showed up, but to be honest with you I didn't want to see you and Luke, you know." He shook his head thinking about it. "That is not an image I want to have in my head. And then I didn't want to tell Mia because I figured she would probably want to tell you." Ryan continued to rant.

"Ryan." Lorelai tried to interrupt him but to no avail.

"I didn't want her to leave. I was excited to spend some time with her. I know it was wrong, but I swear to God that nothing happened." Ryan sighed. "I know I'm in big trouble, but you have to believe me when I say nothing happened. Because it didn't."

"I believe you." Lorelai said softly.

"Mom come on, I…" He stopped when he realized what she had said. "You believe me."

Lorelai nodded as she walked over to the bed and sat down. She motioned for him to join her. "Yes. Come sit."

Ryan walked over to the bed and sat next to her. "I'm sorry that I didn't tell her to go home. That would have been the responsible adult thing to do."

"Well kid, you are not an adult. And you are bound to make mistakes, especially since you are my kid. You are going to get it naturally." Lorelai smiled at him.

"I hate that her dad got so pissed off." Ryan sighed. It hadn't been a pretty sight. He felt bad that his mom had gotten yelled at. She hadn't even done anything wrong.

"She did lie to him, but he shouldn't have responded that way. It is never productive." Lorelai tapped his knee.

"Agreed. Thanks for not acting like that." He really was grateful.

"Takes a lot of practice." She gave him a look. "I have experience being the kid on the other side of the yelling and disappointment. I know it doesn't work."

Ryan nodded. "Just so you know, Rory didn't want her to stay. I don't want her to lose any of those good kid points she has built up."

Lorelai smiled. "I kind of figured. I'm not going to take any of your points away either."

"Good. I need all that I can get." He laughed.

Lorelai smiled and the room got quiet for a moment. She was trying to figure out the best way to broach the subject. "We do need to talk about something."

Ryan raised an eyebrow. She had her serious face on. "What?"

"You are fifteen." Lorelai began.

"Really?" Ryan joked. "That's seriously cool." He gave her a hard time.

Lorelai glared at him. "Hey. I need to have a serious conversation with you."

"Okay. This is my serious face." He tried to stop himself from laughing. Lorelai shot him another look.

"You are fifteen." She continued. "I know that you are probably thinking about sex. I know that I was."

"Oh mom." Ryan held up his hands. "Please no. Not a sex talk. You already had this talk with me, and it was awkward enough."

"I know." Lorelai nodded. "I'll be in therapy for years after that talk. It marked me for life."

"Well it isn't a conversation I should have had with my mom." Ryan looked down.

Lorelai cringed. He was right. Christopher should have been there, and now she wasn't even sure what kind of trouble he had gotten himself into. But she couldn't think about that now. "Before you get all grossed out and begin to tune me out, this isn't really a sex talk."

"Kind of seems like a sex talk." He made sure to point out the similarities.

"I know that you are going to have sex one day. I wish that day would be when you are sixty, but I'm not a stupid woman. I know that is one wish I'll never get." Lorelai smiled. She could tell he was listening.

"Mom. Seriously. Do we have to have this conversation?" He grimaced.

"Yes. Listen to me. This is important. Sex is a big deal." Lorelai took a moment. "I love you and your sisters, but I was not ready to be a mom at 16. Now. I wouldn't change having you for anything in the world, but I do wish that I would have taken sex more seriously. I had to grow up a lot faster. I don't want that for you. I want you to be a kid and enjoy every minute of it. Because, honestly, it all goes by incredibly too fast. Trust me."

"I get it." Ryan told her.

"Sex is different for girls. They can say that it doesn't matter, but it does and it should. You should be in love. I want you to be in love. It's so much better when you are in love."

"Mom." Ryan groaned.

"I just want you to know these things. No one ever talked to me about any of this, and I wish someone had. It is my job as your mom to make sure that you know."

"Okay." Ryan sighed. "If I told you that I get it, then can we be done talking about this?"

Lorelai swallowed hard. "I know that it might be awkward, but I want you to come to me when you decide to have sex. I want to know. I can give you condoms. Because if you are going to have sex then I want you to be safe. Even if the girl says she is on birth control. Extra protection is always better."

"I know."

"No glove no love." Lorelai joked and Ryan shook his head in pure embarrassment.

"Oh God mom." He stood up. "You were doing so well up until that sentence."

"You understand what I am saying, right?" Lorelai hoped that she was getting through to him.

"Yes." Ryan nodded. He really did get it.

"Good. I love you so much." She stood up.

"I love you too, mom."

Lorelai gave him a kiss on the forehead and squeezed him tight. "I've got to go to the Inn for a little bit, but I won't be gone long."

"Okay."

Lorelai turned to leave.

"Hey mom." Ryan stopped her.

"Yeah sweets." She turned back to face her son.

"I'm not think about having sex with Grace." He said honestly. "I like her a lot, but we aren't there yet. It never even crossed my mind last night, and if it did, if we were going to have sex it would not be in a supply closet at the Inn."

Lorelai smiled. "That's good to know."

"Thanks, mom."

Lorelai hugged her son again. She really did believe he had been listening to her, and that is all that she cared about.

* * *

Luke walked upstairs to his apartment. By the time he got to the diner, the crowd wasn't too bad. He had plenty of time to put his things away. When he opened the door, he found Jess sitting at the table. "Hey."

"Hey." Jess said but didn't look up.

"Are you in trouble?" Luke walked further into the apartment. Jess didn't sit at the table often. It was either because he was eating or had bad news.

"Not that I'm aware."

Luke nodded. "Okay. Then what's with the doom and gloom." He pointed to the kid's face.

"We need to talk."

"You are in trouble, aren't you?" Luke was now touching the table, bracing himself for whatever Jess was about to tell him.

"No. But I did get the letter back from Chilton."

"Oh Jess. It's okay. Those idiots would know smart if Albert Einstein walked into the room. We can try one of the other schools on the list. Because you are a bright kid, and I am very proud of you. Who cares about Chilton?"

Jess smiled and shook his head. "That's good to know, but I got in."

Luke looked at Jess to make sure he wasn't lying to him. "You did?"

Jess nodded. "Yep."

"You look sad."

"I'm more confused than sad. I don't if I belong in a place like Chilton."

"You absolutely belong there." Luke pulled him up from the table, and gave him a hug. "This is great news. You should be very proud of yourself."

Jess smiled. His uncle was the only person that ever made him feel like he was worth anything. "Thanks for believe in me." He paused for a moment as Luke let him go. "I wonder what mom would think."

Luke was surprised Jess mentioned his mother. He didn't often. "You can call her."

"No. I'm good." Jess responded. He didn't need to call his mom. She had a way of turning good things into stressful things.

"We are celebrating tonight." Luke said happily. He really was proud of his nephew. He knew Jess was capable of great things.

"We don't have to."

Luke nodded. "Yes we do."

"Okay." Jess smiled. "Are you going to buy me that car now?"

Luke chuckled. "I was thinking on grilling you a hamburger and letting you have some pie."

"Next best thing to a car." Jess joked. Maybe getting into Chilton was a good thing.

* * *

Lorelai walked into the coffee shop. Her dad was already there sitting at a table in the corner. He had already ordered her a coffee.

"Lorelai." Richard waved her over and started to stand up.

"Oh don't stand up." Lorelai told him.

"I got you a coffee."

"Thank you." She took a sip. "Taste great."

Richard could tell that she seemed distracted. "So."

"So." Lorelai didn't know how to begin this conversation.

"You wanted to meet with me."

"I did."

"Without your mother. Is this about her? I thought things were going better between the two you."

"They are." She answered quickly. "We are fine. This isn't about mom."

"I don't like keeping things from her."

"I know."

"What's wrong?" Richard was beginning to worry.

"I um I…" She was struggling to find the words. "God. I don't even know how to say this."

"Lorelai. You are really beginning to worry me."

"Have you heard from Christopher?"

Richard looked at her. He wasn't expecting that question. "No. I can't say that I have. Is everything alright with him?"

Lorelai shook her head. "I'm not sure. I think he may be in trouble."

"Trouble. What kind of trouble?"

"I don't know."

"What makes you think that he is in trouble?" Richard was curious and concerned. He didn't like the look that had appeared on his daughter's face.

"Dad," Lorelai braced herself. "Christopher has a lot of problems…" She took a breath as she stared at her father. "I don't want to get into all of that, but I have a feeling he has done something wrong." She thought about how to continue. Her father didn't say anything. He wanted her to continue. "Two men came to Luke's Diner looking for him. Luke thought they looked a little sketchy. Well maybe a lot sketchy."

"Your boyfriend Luke?" Richard needed clarification.

Lorelai nodded.

"Why would they think Christopher would be there?" Richard found that a little strange.

"That is what worries me." She couldn't let her mind think the worst. "I have a feeling they know a lot more about me and the kids than I want them to know."

Richard grimaced. He couldn't imagine what Christopher could have gotten himself into, and why he would do something that could put his children into jeopardy. "Lorelai, you have to tell me what you think he may have gotten himself into. You don't have to tell me everything, but you need to give me more."

"He is a gambler." Lorelai admitted.

"Oh I see." He felt like that made sense. There were signs there the whole time the two had been married, but he didn't want to think badly of Christopher. He wanted to believe that Christopher was a good husband and a good father. He always needed to believe that.

"I'm really worried." Lorelai was shaking. "I thought you might be able to get one of your P.I. guys to look into it."

"I absolutely will." Richard started thinking about who he could call. "I'm going to get you and the kids' protection."

Lorelai shook her head quickly. "No." That couldn't happen. "Dad. I don't want them to know. They can't know. They'll worry way too much, and maybe it is nothing to worry about."

"Lorelai, it sounds like it is most definitely something to worry about." Richard said sternly. "I want to protect you."

"Daddy." She had tears in her eyes.

"Oh Lorelai." He moved his chair closer to hers, so that he could comfort her. She rested her head on his shoulder.

She wiped away a tear. "I don't know what he has done, but I'm tired of him disappointing my children."

"We will figure this out. Okay. I promise."

"But no security."

Richard thought for a moment. "I will agree to that until we figure out what he has gotten himself into. After that, I make no promises."

Lorelai nodded. "Thanks, daddy."

Richard wrapped his arms around his daughter and let her cry. It was something he couldn't remember ever doing. He was going to protect his daughter and grandchildren no matter what.

Damn Christopher.

* * *

Ryan walked into the diner. Luke spotted him almost immediately. "Hey kid."

"Hey Luke." Ryan nodded at the man.

"I'm glad you came by. I wanted to talk to you." Luke told the boy.

"Okay." Ryan figured it had to do with Grace.

"Follow me." Luke pointed as he walked to the store room.

Ryan gave him a look. This must be serious. He followed him without any further thought.

"What's up?" Ryan asked as they walked into the room.

"I want you to know that you talk to me about anything." Luke pointed at Ryan. He wanted the boy to understand that.

"Okay." Ryan smiled. It was funny seeing Luke kind of nervous.

"I know some things should be between me. I get that it is probably awkward talking to your mom about…" He paused for a moment trying to find the right words. "You know. S….Guy stuff." Luke couldn't say the word.

"Sex." Ryan clarified for him.

"Yep." Luke nodded. "That's right. Amongst other things. I'm here for you."

Ryan chuckled. "Thanks, Luke."

"So last night." Luke broached the subject.

"Nothing happened." Ryan said quickly.

"I thought you might be lying to your mom, but you can tell me the truth."

Ryan shook his head. "Mom would be able to tell if I were lying. She's pretty good at that."

"Oh." Luke was relieved that Ryan wasn't lying to his mother.

"It is nice to know that I can talk to you about stuff." Ryan sighed. "My mom is cool, but she knows how to make everything a little awkward."

"I get that." Luke nodded.

Ryan took the man by surprise and gave him a hug. "I really appreciate you Luke."

Luke hugged him back.

Ryan was really happy to have Luke in his life. It felt nice to have a father figure in his life. He hoped that it wasn't too good to be true.

* * *

Later that afternoon, Lorelai walked into her house.

"Mommy." Ruby immediately ran to see her.

"Ruby Ru." Lorelai hugged her tightly.

"I missed you so much last night." Ruby told her.

"I missed you too." Lorelai picked up the little girl. "What are you up too?" She asked as she walked into the living room to see Rory cuddled on the couch.

"We are watching Sleeping Beauty."

"Ooh. Nice choice."

"I let her pick." Rory smiled. Ruby always picked.

"Of course."

"Will you watch with us?"

"You bet." Lorelai said as she sat down on the couch between her daughters. "There is nothing I would want more. My girls." She wrapped her arms around her precious daughters. "All that is missing is your brother."

"I'm right here." Ryan said as he walked in carrying the tub of popcorn. "I've got the popcorn."

"Oh yay. My favorite." Lorelai said, motioning from him to hand her the tub. He did as the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it."

"Did you guys order takeout? Hope it is Chinese."

Ryan opened the door to see Grace. "Hey. I'm surprise to see you. I figured you were grounded."

"I am." She pointed to the car in the driveway. "My mom is waiting in the car."

"What's going on?" Ryan could tell the girl was about to cry.

"We can't hangout anymore."

"What?" Ryan was surprised. "We can't hangout while you are grounded?"

Grace shook her head. "We can't see each other anymore. My parents think that you are a bad influence on me."

"They can't do that." Ryan shook his head. "That's not fair."

"I'm sorry." Grace didn't know what else to say. "I've got to go." She turned and began walking to the car.

"Grace. Wait. Grace." Ryan tried to stop her, but she was already gone.

Lorelai walked into the foyer as Grace was leaving.

"Mom. They can't do this. Nothing happened. You have to talk to them." Ryan was upset.

"Oh hon." Lorelai hugged her son. Heartbreak really was the worst.

* * *

 **Let ent me know what you thought!**


	62. Mad, Miserable, and Mopey

**So sorry for the lack of updates last week! I will try my best to do better.**

 **I hope you all enjoy this chapter.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 62: Mad, Miserable, and Mopey**

Monday rolled around, and Lorelai had never been so grateful to start the week. After, Grace's announcement, Ryan wallowed, but in a completely different way than Lorelai was expecting. He was mad and miserable and mopey. He made everyone in the house feel the exact same way. It was like there was no escaping his miserableness.

Lorelai walked downstairs and smiled as she saw the coffee pot was already full. "God bless you, Rory." She whispered as Rory walked out of her room.

"You're welcome." Rory said, hearing her mom's comment.

"You sure know how to make mommy feel better." She said as she poured herself a cup of coffee.

"Anything for mommy." Rory chuckled. She grabbed her backpack from the counter. "Is he still in his room?"

Lorelai nodded. She hadn't even checked to see if he was awake, like she normally did. "I was afraid to knock on his door."

"How long does normal wallowing take?" Rory asked. Lorelai had talked to her about wallowing, but they hadn't discussed a timeframe.

Lorelai sighed. "It really depends on the person. It used to take me a few days, with a pint of double chocolate ice cream and a Soap marathon." Lorelai would never tell her about the vodka or tequila that she had stolen from her parent's a few times after a breakup. That would be saved for a much later date...Maybe when she was thirty.

"Can you lock him in his room until he is over it?" Rory asked, knowing it wasn't an option.

"Afraid not. We are going to have to tough it out." Lorelai touched Rory on the shoulder and took a drink of her coffee. "This is a good cup of coffee."

"I added more coffee than normal. Less water. Thought you could use it."

"You are the best."

The phone rang. Lorelai walked into the living room and grabbed the phone. "The house of heartbreak." She answered, hoping it was Luke.

"It's still bad over there?" She had been right. It had been Luke.

"Yep. I'm not really sure how it turned around on me like this. I am not the one that said they couldn't see each other."

"But he is mad because you won't talk to Robert." Luke stated. They had discussed it all the night before when Ryan had his music blaring and wouldn't come out of his room.

"You met that man." Lorelai rolled her eyes as she thought about Robert. "There would be absolutely no reasoning with him."

"I'm guessing that Ryan doesn't see it that way."

"He blamed the parent code." Lorelai still couldn't believe it. "I really hope that this blows over soon. I don't know how much more of angry Ryan that I can take."

"Anything I can do to help?" Luke asked.

Lorelai smiled. He was always so kind and thoughtful. "Just being you always helps."

"Mommy. Can Rory take me to school?" Ruby asked as she came bouncing into the living room.

"If Rory has time." Lorelai told her.

"She does." Ruby ran back to her room to get Rory. "Hi Luke." She yelled so that Luke could hear her.

"Tell her hi." Luke said with a big smile on his face.

"He says hi." Lorelai said but Ruby had already bounced off to her room.

"You sound busy."

"There is never a dull moment in this house." Lorelai thought.

"I'm going to bring dinner over tonight."

"No vegetables this time. I don't have the strength for vegetables."

"Maybe just some broccoli."

Lorelai made a face. "That's the worst vegetable. You can bring me some pasta."

"That's not a vegetable."

"I'll pretend if you will." She smiled, imagining the look on Luke's face.

He was frowning. "I want to keep you alive longer."

"I can think of many ways that will keep me alive longer." Lorelai flirted. "Vegetables isn't one of them."

"Alright. No vegetables tonight, but at least once this week."

"I'll think about it."

"That is all I ask." Luke smiled. "I should let you go. I've got customers. Good luck with Ryan."

"Thanks. I'm going to need it." Lorelai said as she hung up the phone.

Rory walked into the room with Ruby in tow. "Okay mom. We are leaving."

"Bye mommy." Ruby had the biggest smile on her face.

"Wait guys." She walked past them and into the kitchen. "I can't let you two go to school without breakfast." She handed them both a pop tart. "Sustenance."

"You take really good care of us." Rory took the pop tart.

"You are the best mommy on the planet."

"Well you two are the best daughters on the whole planet." Lorelai gave them both hugs and kisses. "See you after school."

She walked back into the kitchen to get some more coffee. She heard Ryan slowly walking down the stairs.

It felt like it took him forever to make it to the kitchen. He sighed when he saw his mom.

"Hey Ryno. I made breakfast." She held up a pop tart. It was the best breakfast she could make.

"I hate that nickname." He rolled his eyes and sighed.

"You loved it when you were three." Lorelai reminded him.

"I'm not three anymore."

"Seriously. Could have fooled me." She raised her eyebrow.

Ryan gave her a look and grabbed his bag from the corner of the kitchen.

"Take a pop tart." She tried again.

"Not hungry." He said simply.

"You've got to eat." She replied.

"Fine." He took the pop tart, realizing she wasn't going to stop until he took it.

"You can come by the Inn after school. I'm sure we have some odd jobs you can do. You can make some extra cash."

Ryan shrugged.

"Ryan. Hon. I know this sucks." She touched his shoulder, but he pulled away.

"I've got to go." He walked past her without saying goodbye.

Lorelai shook her head. They were always taking one step forward and a thousand steps back in their relationship, and this wasn't even her fault at all.

She walked to the door and watched him leave. All she could do was sigh, lean against the door frame, and hope that it would get better.

* * *

At school Rory and Lane were walking down the hallway. "I can't believe this is your last week at Stars Hollow High." Lane told her.

"I know. It feels a little weird."

"I'm going to miss you so much." She gave Rory a half hug. "I didn't know what a best friend was until you came into this town. I'm so glad that you did."

"Awe. Don't make me cry." Rory wrapped her arms around Lane. "We are still going to see each other every day. I promise."

Rory and Lane noticed Grace walking down the hall. She stared at them for a moment before walking in the opposite direction.

Lane gave Rory a look. "That was strange. Did I miss something?"

"Kind of." Rory made a face.

"Spill Gilmore."

"Grace came to the Inn without permission. Her dad freaked out, blamed my mom and Ryan, and forbid her from hanging out with him anymore. I guess that means me too." Rory hadn't even thought about that before. The whole situation sucked.

"That is so stupid."

"Yeah. Ryan is really upset and since he can't take it out on Grace's dad, he is mad at mom."

"Awe poor Lorelai."

Rory nodded. "I know. She hates fighting with either one of us, and this time there shouldn't be a fight at all. I'm a little mad at my brother. He is being a real jerk."

"I would like to point out that I've always felt like Grace was a little sketchy." Lane remembered how she felt in the beginning. "Just a feeling."

"Maybe we should have trusted your feeling."

"I'm not always accurate, but I think I'm at about 70/30."

Rory laughed. "That's not bad odds. I think I'll take you to Vegas."

"Oh there is your brother." Lane pointed out. "He looks heartbroken."

"All weekend. That was how he was all weekend."

"Poor Ryan." Lane said as they continued to walk down the hall.

Ryan saw his sister and Lane when he walked into the school. He didn't feel like talking to them, so he ducked down the opposite hallway.

"Grace." He called out to her when he saw her at her locker. She was surrounded by girls she hadn't talked to in a while.

She gave him one look and turned back around to the girls. It was like he didn't even exist. He felt even worse. He couldn't believe how quickly Grace seemed to change. He didn't want to be at school. He didn't want to be around people. He had to get away. Next thing he knew, he was walking out of the building and in the opposite direction of the school.

"Hey man." Jess stopped him. "Did school get cancelled today, and I didn't get the memo?"

"It did for me." Ryan said without even stopping.

Jess looked at him worriedly. He had a feeling Ryan's sudden urge to skip had to do with Grace. He decided not to go after him. They had tests. He couldn't miss school. People would definitely notice that Ryan was missing. Jess had a feeling this was not going to end well.

* * *

At the Independence Inn, Lorelai was manning the front desk. Michel was out for the day, and even though he could be the most annoying man on the planet, Michel was extremely good at his job.

"Lorelai," Mia said as she joined Lorelai behind the desk.

"Hi Mia. Everything is running smoothly. I can't wait to tell Michel that we can make it without him. I'm pretty sure that he was hoping we were going to crash and burn." Lorelai chuckled as she sat her pen on the desk and turned towards Mia.

"Why would you think that?"

"Oh he told me before he left." Lorelai smiled.

"Well we will show him." Mia waved her fist. "We will prove him wrong." She paused for minute. "Dear. I just wanted to apologize to you again."

"Mia, what do you have to apologize for?"

"What happened the other night was all my fault." Mia told her. She felt responsible.

Lorelai shook her head. "No way. Mia. You cannot blame yourself."

"I should have been watching them closer."

"They are fifteen years old. They know better."

Mia sighed. "That's true." She felt a little better about it. Robert had been a total jerk to Lorelai, and she hated it.

"Besides, you never could have predicted that Grace was going to show up or that her psycho father was going to cause a scene."

"Sookie told me that they aren't allowed to see each other." Mia was pretty sure that was not going to work.

Lorelai sighed. "It is ridiculous. I thought all parents knew that forbidding teenagers from seeing each other would only push them closer together." She paused. "Clearly Grace's parents have never ever watched any teenage movie."

"What are you going to do?" Mia knew Lorelai always had a plan.

Lorelai shrugged. "I feel like there is nothing that I can do about it. I hate it, but that man isn't going to listen to me – I'll just have to deal with heartbroken Ryan for a little while."

"I know how that can be. My son had a few heartbreaks back in the day, but it will get better. I promise." She touched Lorelai's shoulder. "I'm sure by next week he will have moved on to something else."

"That's what I'm hoping for." Lorelai knew that it would get better. She had experienced her fair share of heartbreak, and she knew that it just takes time. And in her case, a bottle of tequila. If she remembered correctly.

Before either woman could say anything else the phone rang. Lorelai answered. "Independence Inn, Lorelai speaking. Yes. Hi Mr. Medina."

Mia watched as Lorelai's face changed to concern.

"Oh you know Mr. Medina, I am so sorry that I forgot to call. He wasn't feeling well this morning." Lorelai hated to lie, but she didn't see any other option. "Right. I know. I should have called. Thank you. That sounds great. Oh I can promise you that he will definitely be feeling better tomorrow. I will make sure of it. Thank you for checking on him. He will be ready to make that test up in the morning." Lorelai hung up the phone and shook her head. "Unbelievable."

"What's wrong?" Mia asked.

"He didn't go to school today."

"Oh no."

Lorelai couldn't believe it. "I don't know where he could be. I'm going to call Luke. Maybe he has seen him."

"He's going to be fine."

"I don't know. I may kill him." Lorelai said as she dialed Luke's number.

"Luke's." Luke answered.

"Hey. It's me. Lorelai."

"Are you okay? You don't sound okay." Luke noticed. She always had a certain tone to her voice, and it was currently missing.

"It's Ryan. Have you seen him?"

"Shouldn't he be at school?"

Lorelai sighed. "You would think that, but no. He decided to play hooky today. I told the school he was sick when they called to check on him. I shouldn't have lied for him, but I didn't want him to get in trouble for missing a test. I'm worried about him. Maybe he went home. He probably knew I wouldn't check there."

"I think I know where he is." Luke realized.

"Where?"

"Do you trust me?"

"Yes. Of course I do." She nodded, knowing that he couldn't see her.

"I'll bring him back to the Inn. Don't worry."

"Thanks, Luke." Lorelai hung up the phone. She continued to be thankful for Luke.

"Has he seen him?" Mia asked her.

"No. But he thinks he knows where he is."

"You can go if you need to go."

Lorelai shook her head. "Luke said he would find him and bring him here."

"Luke is a good man."

Lorelai smiled. "He really is."

* * *

Ryan was sitting on the bridge skipping rocks on the water. He knew that his absence from school wouldn't go unnoticed, and that his mom was probably already aware that he had ditched. But for some reason that didn't bother him. He couldn't bear to be in school with Grace, especially after how she had looked at him. It really sucked.

"I thought you were supposed to be in school."

Ryan turned around to see Luke standing behind him. Busted. He knew he would be. Ryan didn't respond. Luke made his way next to the boy and sat down beside him. "What are you doing out here all alone?"

Ryan looked up at him and back at the water. "Skipping rocks."

Luke nodded. "Care if I join you?"

"Sure." Ryan handed him a rock.

Luke skipped it across the water.

"You aren't half bad."

"Practice." He said simply. Luke was trying to figure out what to say. He had never been very good at talks, not even when he was the kid.

"How did you know I would be here?" Ryan asked him.

"I had a feeling." Luke felt like this was Ryan's spot. Every kid had one. It was the place he could go to feel safe. Luke had one when he was a kid. Oddly enough it had been his dad's office which was now his home. There had always been something about the place that made Luke feel like he was home. I guess it made sense that he had turned it into an apartment.

"I went to school." Ryan felt the clarification was needed. Skipping had not be premeditated.

"From what I heard you weren't there long enough to be counted."

Ryan shook his head. "I felt suffocated. I needed air."

"You can get air by walking outside and then walking back in." Luke let him know.

Ryan looked at the older man. "I know. I made a mistake."

Luke nodded.

"I know my mom is probably really mad."

"I think she is more concerned than mad." Luke told him honestly. "She hates to see you so sad."

"I'm not sad."

"Mad."

Ryan sighed. "I don't know what I am. Confused. I guess would be the right emotion."

"Girls can do that to you." Luke smiled. "You will probably spend the rest of your life feeling confused."

"Everything was going so well." Ryan tried to figure it all out. "I thought her parents liked me."

Luke shook his head. "They never liked you."

Ryan gave him a look.

"What I meant to say," Luke smiled as he figured out the best way to say what he was thinking. "You're a boy."

"O..Kay." Ryan still had a look on his face.

"This isn't going well." Luke shifted to look at Ryan. "Parents of teenage girls never like the boys their daughters date. My dad hated every guy that Liz brought home. He had good reason with most of the losers she dated." Luke remembered. "I remember one time he brought out the shotgun. That was kind of funny." Luke chuckled as he remembered his dad sitting in his chair cleaning his shotgun. The poor sap looked like he was going to pee in his pants, and Liz had been mortified. Luke hadn't laughed that hard in years. "You could have been the most perfect kid in the world, but they were never going to like you or trust you with their daughter."

Ryan sighed. He knew that Luke was probably right. It still sucked. "She acted like I didn't even exist today. I felt like someone had stabbed me in the chest."

Luke grimaced. "I'm sorry kid. That does suck. I wish I had some words of wisdom to give you that would solve all your problems and make you feel better, but I don't. All I can say is that the feeling you have right now will go away. I can't tell you when but it will, especially when you meet someone else."

Ryan shook his head. "I'm done. I don't want to meet anyone else."

"You don't mean that. Trust me. You are only fifteen. There are going to be a lot of girls in your life and one day you are going to find the girl that will change everything."

"How will I know?" Ryan asked.

"You'll just know. You will have this feeling inside your stomach that never goes away."

Ryan nodded.

"You can't let one bad experience, your first experience, ruin the journey. It isn't easy, but it will be worth it."

"You are a lot more sentimental and knowledgeable than I ever thought you would be." Ryan joked. "You know for a grumpy diner owner."

A smile crept across Luke's face. "Yeah well don't going blabbing to anyone. I don't want to lose my street cred."

"It can be our little secret."

"Good." Luke looked at his watch. "I should probably get you to the Inn."

"I don't have to go back to school?" He was okay with that.

Luke shook his head. "Nope. Your mom had to tell the school that you were sick."

"Awesome. So I really do get a free day." Ryan said as he and Luke stood up.

"I don't think it is much of a free day. Your mom wasn't too happy about lying to your principal."

"Yeah. I hate that she had to do that."

"You definitely need to apologize to your mom." Luke informed him. "You can't blame her for Robert's decision. Lorelai always has your back. That is one thing I'm positive that you will never have to worry about."

"I know. I feel bad for being such a jerk."

"I know it isn't easy to talk about things. Hell. I hate talking."

"You aren't so bad at it." Ryan told him again.

"Yeah well I've learned a little bit over the years." Luke touched Ryan's shoulder and smiled.

"Thanks, Luke."

"Anytime, bud. Anytime."

Ryan was still hurting but thanks to Luke he did feel better about the situation. It wasn't the end of the world. It would get better with time. He just had to remember that.

* * *

 **I split this chapter from the next chapter so that I could get this posted. Let me know what you thought!**


	63. Moving

**Thanks again for all the support! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 63: Moving**

Walking down Stars Hollow High, Rory spotted Jess. "Hey Jess."

Jess looked at her but instead of stopping, he kept walking.

Rory did something she didn't do often, ran after him. "Jess. Earth to Jess. Jess Mariano. Stop." She yelled, causing him to do what she had commanded. He turned to face her.

"Why are you running away from me?"

"I wasn't."

She hit his shoulder as hard as Rory Gilmore could hit.

"Ow." Jess held his arm. "What was that for?"

"You did try to run away from me." Rory pointed her finger. "I want to know why."

Jess shrugged. "I've got to get to class."

"You have a free period right now."

"God Gilmore. Do you keep up with everyone's schedule or just mine?"

"Whatever Mariano." Rory rolled her eyes. "Where's my brother?" She had noticed that he was missing from one of their classes.

"Oh um Ryan. I don't know." Jess stumbled over his words.

"Jess."

"I really don't know where he is." Jess said honestly. "All I know is that he left school this morning."

"Oh." Rory immediately started to worry. "This is Grace's fault." She thought.

Before Jess could say anything else, Rory had stormed off in the opposite direction. She made her way into the cafeteria and to the table where Grace and her "new" best friends were sitting. "You." Rory pointed, her rare temper getting the best of her.

"Rory." Grace looked up from her lunch. "Are you okay?"

Rory glared at her, even madder than when she had entered the cafeteria. "Seriously. What is your deal?"

"Rory." Jess came up behind her. "Let's just go. We don't want to make a scene." It was crazy that Jess had become the voice of reason.

"I'm not making a scene." Rory said as she turned towards Jess and then back to Grace. "We need to talk."

"Rory. There is nothing to talk about."

"Yes there is." She pointed to the hallway. Grace stood up and followed Rory to the hallway.

"Rory." Grace said again.

"What is wrong with you? Did you say something to my brother? He left school. I'm assuming it is because of you."

"I didn't say anything to Ryan."

Rory rolled her eyes. "You ignored him like you ignored Lane and me." She felt her temper continue to rise. "I thought you liked him. I thought you wanted to be our friend."

"I do like him, and I did want to be your friend."

"Then what changed?"

Grace had tears forming in her eyes. "It was easier this way."

"What are you talking about?"

"We are moving." Grace said sadly. "I overheard my parents talking about it a few days ago. It broke my heart to think that I would have to leave you guys."

"Wait." Rory was confused. "That's why you snuck out?"

Grace nodded. "I knew my parents would be mad, but I wanted to spend some more time with Ryan before I had to tell him that we were moving. Then my dad went ballistic. He was worse than I ever imagined." Grace really did feel bad about what had happened. "He didn't forbid me from seeing Ryan. He and my mom told me that we were moving in about a month. They hadn't told me because they knew I would be upset. I really like being friends with you guys."

"I still don't get it. Why didn't you just tell us the truth? You didn't have to ignore us."

"I thought it would be easier for me. I'm not very good at goodbyes." Grace admitted. "If you guys hated me then I wouldn't have to say goodbye."

"Oh Grace." Rory thought her reasoning was dumb but would let it slide. "You have to tell Ryan the truth. He is heartbroken."

Grace nodded. "I know. He looked like I had stabbed him in the chest."

"He is really going to miss you."

"I don't even want to think about it." She shrugged. "I really, really liked him. I thought we were going to be together forever."

"There is always long distance." Rory didn't actually think that it would work out. It hardly ever did in the movies.

Grace shook her head. "We are only fifteen."

Rory nodded. It was absolutely true.

"Please don't say anything to Ryan. I'll tell him."

"I won't."

"Thanks, Rory. I'm really sorry."

"It's okay." Rory gave her a hug. "I understand you weren't thinking clearly." She thought for a moment as they started to walk back into the cafeteria. "So why was your dad so mad about Ryan, if he knew you were moving?" She asked curiously. It was kind of weird.

"He gets really overprotective." Grace told her.

Rory was really glad that her mom never acted that way. It was extremely stressful. Although, she and Grace didn't have the type of friendship she and Lane had, she was still going to miss the girl. She felt bad for Ryan. She knew he was going to be even more upset after he heard the real news.

* * *

Luke and Ryan stood on the front steps of the Independence Inn. Luke looked over at Ryan. "Are we going to stand out here all day?" He asked the boy.

Ryan looked up at him with a sigh. "How much trouble do you think I'm in?" He wondered. Ryan felt bad for yet again disappointing his mom. She was always pretty supportive and definitely didn't deserve his bad attitude. She was lenient most of the time, but he had a feeling that she wasn't going to go easy on him this time. Not only had he skipped school, but he had skipped a test. He could have really screwed up his GPA if his mom hadn't had his back and lied to the principal.

Luke finally shrugged. "You are never going to know if you don't go in there and face her." He pointed out the obvious.

"That sounds good to me." He started to walk away, but Luke pulled him back. Ryan grunted.

"The biggest part about being a man is accepting the consequences when you screw up."

Ryan made a face. He knew that Luke was right, but he was still nervous. The disappointed look on her face was going to be the worst part.

"Let's go." Luke gently pushed him forward.

Ryan sighed. "Alright. Here goes my life." He said as they walked into the Inn.

To his surprise, once his mom spotted him, she ran towards him and wrapped her arms around him. "I'm so glad you are okay."

"I'm sorry mom." It was the only thing that he could say.

"You two can go in my office if you need some space." Mia told Lorelai as she touched Ryan's shoulder softly.

"That's a good idea." She gave Ryan a look. She was positive that they needed to talk.

"I think I'm going to head out. I need to get back to the diner." Luke told them.

"Thanks, Luke." Ryan told him with a nod.

"Anytime, Ryan." Luke smiled.

Ryan smiled back. He knew that he meant it.

"You go wait in Mia's office. I'll be right there." Lorelai told Ryan.

"Okay." Ryan didn't argue and made his way to the office.

"See ya Mia." Luke told her as Lorelai took his hand and led him out of the Inn.

"Thank you, so much for finding him. Where was he?" She was curious.

"The bridge."

Lorelai shook her head. She should have known. "That stupid bridge. Do you think we could talk to Taylor about taking it out?"

"I'll get right on that." Luke laughed as he pulled her closer.

"I should have thought about that stupid bridge."

"Hey as long as the bridge is there at least you will know where he is going."

"Good point." She gave him a quick kiss.

"We had a good talk." Luke informed her.

"Thank you for being such a good role model for him. He really needs you in his life."

"I'm happy to help." He hugged her. "Do you need anything else?"

Lorelai thought about the question. "I hate to ask, but do you think you could pick up Ruby? I forgot that she gets out of school early today."

"I'll take her to the diner."

"Are you sure that you don't mind?"

"I'm positive." Luke didn't mind at all. "I'll fill her full of milkshakes. She will love that."

"She will never want to come home." She kissed Luke again. "You really are the best."

"You keep saying that."

"You keep getting better." Lorelai teased. "I should get back to Ryan."

"Go easy on him." Luke could tell she wasn't as mad as Ryan thought she was.

"Oh I have the perfect plan for my little skipper." Lorelai smiled deviously. Luke couldn't wait to hear it. Single parents really had to get creative.

* * *

Lorelai walked into Mia's office. Ryan was standing next to Mia's desk, waiting for his mom.

"Hey." Ryan said once he saw his mom.

"Hi." Lorelai looked at him from top to bottom. He didn't seem as sad to her. Maybe that was because of his conversation with Luke. "How are you feeling?" She asked him as she walked further into the room.

Ryan faked a cough, and Lorelai shot him a look. "I think I'm on the mend."

"Good." She nodded. "I told your principal that you would be at school tomorrow. I wanted to make sure you didn't make me a liar." She said sternly with a pointed look.

"I'm sorry. Really. Mom. I'm sorry." He hoped that she knew how sorry that he was. He really hadn't been thinking clearly.

"I hear ya." Lorelai said as she took a seat on the couch situated next to the wall. She patted the spot next to her. Ryan sat next to her.

"I'm not just sorry about skipping school, but I'm sorry about the way I acted this weekend. It isn't your fault."

"I'm glad that you finally realized that." She tapped his shoulder.

"I did go to school today." He thought the clarification was needed. "I didn't want to go, but I did."

"Did you forget how long you were supposed to be at school? I'm pretty sure ten seconds has never been long enough."

He sighed and looked down at the ground. For some reason, he didn't want to look at her face as he told her how he had been feeling earlier that day. "I walked into school and saw Grace. She looked at me like I had the plague. It was like I didn't even exist, and it really sucked. Honestly, it made me mad because I wasn't expecting her to act that way. I don't know what I was expecting, but all I know is that it wasn't that." He sighed again. "So I ditched. I know it was wrong. I know you are mad, but I had to get out of there. It was suffocating."

Lorelai smiled. She knew exactly the feeling he was talking about. She had been in a similar situation when she was earlier. "Oh hon." She rubbed his shoulders. "I completely understand. I've been in your shoes before." She smiled as she thought about her thirteen year old self. "I ran out of school once because of a boy." She knew she didn't need to mention any of the other times she had skipped school.

"Really?"

Lorelai nodded. "Yep. I was heartbroken over some little punk that wasn't worth my time." She couldn't even remember why she liked him. It was more about having a boyfriend, not really about the boy. "I was thirteen. I went to the mall." She smiled. "Without any money. Was not a wise decision because I was hungry."

"Did it help?" Ryan asked.

"Yes. Actually it did. My dad showed up and caught me." She could still see his face.

"Grandpa? I bet he was mad."

Lorelai smiled again. "I think he was a little mad, but he comforted me. That's exactly what I needed."

Ryan smiled thinking about his grandpa catching his mom.

"I know what happened with Grace sucked, but you are so young. I know you don't want to think about this. Neither do I, but you are going to have a lot of girlfriends. You will get your heart broken again, and I'm guessing you are going to break a lot of hearts." If he was anything like his father, she knew that was going to be true. "When it happens again, I want you to remember how strong you are and how special you are."

"Coming from my mommy." Ryan made a face.

"It's the truth." She ruffled. "I wouldn't lie to you."

Ryan nodded. "Sure."

"I fully expect you to wallow if it happens again." She held up her hand. "But I want to explain to you what is included in wallowing."

"Mom."

"No. No. You need to hear this. A proper wallow includes staying in your pajamas all day while you eat nothing but gallons of ice cream and tons of pizza, you don't shower or shave your legs or put on any kind of make up at all and just sit in the dark and watch really sad movies. You can cry as much or as little as you need too."

Ryan laughed. "Mom. I think you have got me confused with Rory."

"Just substitute the shaving your legs and not wearing make up part for some guy thing you like to do and that's wallowing. You can be male or female to wallow."

"Okay." Ryan nodded. "I'll remember that for next time."

"That's all I ask." She patted his knee. Their conversation seemed to be going well.

Ryan looked up at his mom. "I know that I'm grounded." He decided to go ahead and throw that out there. It would make it easier for both of them.

His mom surprised him by laughing and shaking her head. "I'm not grounding you."

"You're not?" He was really surprised but relieved. Summer was about to start, and he didn't want to spend the first few days at home.

"No." She chuckled. "Your wallowing period is over. I am not going to let you sit at home and mope."

"Oh. Okay." Ryan smiled.

"Besides you are going to be working at the Inn this weekend and next week."

"Seriously?" Ryan made a face. He knew it had been too good to be true. "That sounds like a punishment."

Lorelai nodded. "I didn't say I wasn't punishing you. I just said you weren't grounded. Oh and you haven't heard the best part." She smiled big. "You are going to be helping Michel with anything that he needs."

"What? Mom. Come on. That's crazy. He's crazy. That's worse than being grounded."

"I think it is a fair punishment." Lorelai thought it was pretty clever. It would get him out of the house, and it would make Michel's life. "If you aren't happy with it, I'm sure we could add another week to it, and maybe even throw in a grounding..."

"Oh no. I'm great with it. Seems extremely fair to me." Ryan decided not to argue. It probably wouldn't be that bad.

Lorelai wrapped her arms around him. "I love you very much. I hope you will always remember that."

Ryan nodded. "I love you too, mom."

"Why don't you go home and study for that test you missed today."

"Okay."

"I'll be home soon."

Ryan stood up. "I'm sorry again for being a jerk."

"It's okay. Just don't make a habit of it."

Ryan nodded. He really would try to do better.

Lorelai smiled. That hadn't gone too bad, and he seemed to be doing better. She still hated that Robert had forbid them from seeing one another. It really wasn't fair, and maybe she should have said something.

* * *

Luke walked into the diner with Ruby bouncing happily behind him. She had been thrilled to see Luke waiting for her outside of school. She ran into his arms. Luke liked to think she was just excited about him, but he was smart enough to know that her excitement was mainly due to her love for chocolate milkshakes.

It only took her five seconds to ask for one, and of course he agreed. He was difficult to say no to little Ruby. He had to admit that Ruby had him wrapped around her little finger, and Luke wasn't even sure how it had happened. He had never been the best with kids. Actually, he had always been pretty terrible with them, but for some reason things were different with her.

"Hey Luke." Rachel greeted him. He was so distracted by Ruby, he hadn't noticed her sitting at the counter bouncing Artie on her knee. Artie was babbling. "He is saying hey Luke too." Rachel beamed.

Luke smirked. It was nice to see Rachel acting like a mother. It wasn't something he had ever expected from her. Maybe they had both changed. "Hey Rach. Hey Artie." He finally responded.

"Baby." Ruby sat next to Rachel and immediately starting making silly faces at Artie. "I love babies." She looked up at Rachel. "My name is Ruby by the way."

"Hi Ruby." Rachel gave her a big smile. She was pretty cute kid. "I'm Rachel." She pointed to the baby. "And this is Artie. Do you really love babies?"

Ruby nodded quickly. "Yeah and babies love me."

Artie kept grabbing Ruby's finger. "See." She pointed. "I'm already his favorite."

"I think you are right about that."

"You are everyone's favorite." Luke added as he walked back to the kitchen to grab an order.

Ruby smiled. "I know that, but don't tell Rory or Ryan. They might get jealous." She looked at Rachel. "I'm the baby in my family."

"I think I could have guessed that. How old are your siblings?" Rachel asked curiously.

"They are fifteen. A boy and a girl." Ruby told her. "They are twins."

"Oh cool. Do you like having a brother and a sister?"

Luke smiled when he walked back to the counter and saw the two interacting. Ruby could carry on a conversation with just about anyone. She always had the best conversations with Kirk. Probably because they were on similar levels.

"I like them a lot, but my mommy is the best. She is the smartest, nicest person on the whole planet." Ruby beamed as she talked about Lorelai, and so did Luke. "Can I hold him?" Ruby asked. "Please."

"Do you think that is a good idea?" Luke looked at Rachel. He wasn't sure how old one needed to be to hold a baby. Artie wasn't a tiny baby, but he was still pretty little.

"Sure." Rachel stood up. "I can set out his play mat. I always bring it with me." She reached into one of her bags to get the play mat.

"Yay." Ruby jumped up and down. "I love play mats too. I used to have one when I was little."

"You are going to set that thing up in here?" He was skeptical.

"It's not that big. Don't worry." Rachel rolled her eyes at Luke. "I'll make sure that it is out of the way. Come on sweet Ruby."

Rachel and Ruby walked to the corner, and Rachel set out the mat and a few of Artie's toys.

Luke watched. He was a little worried that Ruby would drop the baby, but Rachel seemed to have it handled.

Rachel finally joined Luke back at the counter. "She is a natural."

Luke nodded.

"I'm glad I finally met one of Lorelai's kids." Rachel had been in town for a little while now and hadn't run into Lorelai again. She had been busy settling back in to her Stars Hollow life. "I'm sure that I will see her again. I'm assuming the two of you are doing well."

Luke nodded again. "Yes. Things are headed in the right direction."

"What direction is that?" Rachel raised an eyebrow.

"The right one." He laughed.

Rachel gave him a look.

"What's with that look?" Luke picked up on it.

"You are so different."

"I'm not different." Luke shook his head.

"Oh my God, Luke Danes." Rachel was now shaking her head. "You are completely different. I never thought in a million years you would like kids. I remember quite clearly that you weren't a big fan. Especially of jam hands." She waved her hands in front of him and mocked.

"Well I guess that I have learned that there is a lot more to kids than jam hands."

"You're right. It's only sixty percent." She joked.

"To be honest with you, I never thought that I would like kids, but Lorelai's kids are different."

"You know why, right?" Rachel asked.

"I'm sure you are going to tell me." He wiped the counter and gave her a look.

"It is because you love her." Rachel was absolutely sure of that fact.

Luke didn't say anything. All he could do was smile.

Rachel smiled back. "You really love her."

"Luke." Ruby called from the play mat. "Can I get that chocolate milkshake now?"

"Coming right up." Luke grabbed a cup from under the counter.

"You are really good with her." Rachel was pleasantly surprised by the new Luke standing in front of her.

"She is a good kid. She makes it pretty easy." Luke started making her milkshake.

"Maybe you and Lorelai could have one of your own. Artie could use a best friend."

"Oh I don't know." Luke said hesitantly.

"Have you thought about it?" Rachel could tell that he had without him even answering.

Luke waited for a moment. He and Lorelai had never talked about it before. If he were being honest though, he had thought about it. "I guess that I have. It would be nice."

"You would make a really good dad." She thought.

"I already feel like a dad. I have Jess." Luke smiled.

"Being a parent really changes you."

Luke nodded. "I know. I think I'd like to have kids with Lorelai." It felt good to say it out loud. He wasn't sure how she would feel about it. "Don't say anything to her. We've never talked about it. We haven't been dating that long. It is way too early for that conversation."

"I never see Lorelai." Rachel reminded him, but my lips are sealed.

"Luke." Ruby bounced back to the counter.

"One chocolate milkshake." He handed it to her.

"Thanks, Luke. You are the very best guy around."

Rachel smiled again. It was a nice change. She was happy that Luke had found someone that made him a very happy man. Of all the people in the world, he deserved it the most.

* * *

Lorelai knocked on the big black door and waited patiently on the front porch. She wasn't sure why he was so nervous. She was just as much of an adult as Robert was, and she seemed to be a lot better at parenting. Maybe it was her age or maybe it was because she had parents a lot like Robert.

The door opened and Robert and Sharon appeared.

"Lorelai." Sharon was surprised to see her.

"Hi." Lorelai said softly.

"What are you doing here?" Robert asked harshly.

"Robert." Sharon scolded.

"Sorry."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "I need to talk to you. Both of you."

"Come in." Sharon motioned.

Lorelai shook her head. "No. It's okay. I don't need to come in. I can say what I need to say right here. I'd actually rather not be in the house when I say this." She took a breath. "I know that you think that you are doing the right thing by your daughter, and it is your right Grace's parents to monitor who she sees and who she doesn't see. But it is also my right as Ryan's parent to stand up for him."

"Lorelai." Sharon tried to interrupt.

"No. No." She waved her hand and shook her head. "I need to say this. I practiced. I know you would hate to ruin a perfectly good speech." She tried to bring a little levity to the situation. Besides, she didn't feel like she had anything to lose. She took a breath. "Ryan is a good kid. He gets into trouble from time to time, but that is completely normal for a fifteen year old boy. He cares about your daughter. I think you should be relieve that someone like my son likes your daughter. He makes a great first boyfriend. They won't all be as good as him." She really did believe that. She was raising a good kid. "But instead of realizing what you have, you have chosen to keep them apart. That's not fair, and I have a heartbroken kid because of your decision. And honestly it is pissing me off." Lorelai finished her tirade. She was rather pleased with herself. Taking up for her kid was all that she could do.

"Wait a minute, Lorelai." Sharon had a confused look on her face.

"What did Ryan tell you?" Robert had a similarly looking confused look on his face.

"You forbid Grace from seeing Ryan." Now Lorelai was the confused one. They looked as if they had no idea what she was talking about.

"What?"

"I think we need to talk." Robert said as Sharon motioned for Lorelai to come in. Lorelai followed the couple into the house not sure what to expect.

* * *

Ryan opened the front door of his house. "Grace." He was surprised to see her. He was actually pissed. He didn't know why she was at his house, when she acted like he didn't even exist at school.

"I know you probably don't want to see me."

Ryan shrugged. She wasn't really wrong.

"I completely understand. I wasn't very nice to you today."

"No you weren't."

"Can we sit?" She motioned to the bench on the porch.

"Sure." He didn't see what it could hurt. Ryan walked outside and closed the door behind him.

Grace took a minute before she began. "I lied to you." She looked up at Ryan, who was giving her a pointed look. "My dad did not forbid me from seeing you."

Ryan raised an eyebrow. He was more confused than ever.

"We are moving. My dad got a job in California."

"Wait. What?" Ryan shook his head, trying to wrap his mind around what she was saying. "Why did you lie about it?"

She shook her head. "I honestly don't know. I guess I thought it would be easier if I lied to you."

"I think I would have noticed that you were no longer in school."

"I was hoping you would hate me so much that you wouldn't care."

Ryan couldn't believe that she lied. She should have been honest with him. "That really makes no sense."

"I know. Believe me. I know."

He sighed. "I can't believe you are leaving."

"In a few weeks."

"We were always going to have to breakup." Ryan realized.

Grace nodded. "Yeah. I thought it might be easier if you hated me." She took a breath. "I was wrong."

"Yeah. You were." Ryan kicked his feet and focused his eyes on a lone rock sitting on the porch. "It sucks either way."

"Yeah." Grace agreed.

"I can't believe you are leaving." His eyes remained on the rock. He wasn't ready to look at her again.

"Me either. I'm really going to miss you. You've been a pretty great boyfriend."

"Right back at you." He finally looked up at her.

She smiled. "Thanks. I'm glad I was a good boyfriend."

"You did your best." He continued the joke. "At least we can joke about it."

Grace looked at him. "I'm really going to miss you." She told him again.

"I'm going to miss you too. Things aren't going to be the same without you."

"I'm nervous." She shifted more in her seat. "You know. About moving. Being the new kid is going to suck."

"You can do it. It gets easier. Trust me. You won't be the new kid forever. People are going to love you. And at least you are going to get to go somewhere cool like California. You'll get a really good tan." He tried to be optimistic for her.

"I've never been to California."

"You might meet someone famous. You might even become famous. I'll be able to say that I knew you way back when."

"You are being really great about this."

Ryan reached for her hand. "I've had a few days to wallow. According to my mom, I'm horrible at it." He smiled. "Besides we have a couple of weeks. We can still hangout."

"I'll have to talk to my dad. He was serious about me being grounded."

"Well we will just have to figure that out."

Grace leaned in and kissed Ryan for probably the last time. "I should get back home."

"Yeah I've got to study for the test I missed today and the one I already have to take tomorrow."

"I'm guessing that's my fault." She felt guilty about the way she had treated him at school.

"You didn't tell me to skip school."

"You your mom mad?"

Ryan shrugged. "Not as mad as I thought. I just have to work with an angry Frenchman for the next week." He made a face. It really sounded like the strangest punishment ever.

"Doesn't sound like a normal punishment." She laughed.

Ryan nodded. "Yeah well that is Lorelai Gilmore for you. She is creative."

"She is a good mom."

"I'm pretty lucky." He knew that was true.

Grace sighed.

"You'll be okay." Ryan rubbed her shoulder.

"You'll visit?" She asked.

"Maybe I'll go to college there."

Although she knew that wasn't going to happen, she smiled and nodded. "They have a lot of great colleges."

"Some of the best."

Grace stood up. "I'll see ya around, Ryan Gilmore."

"See ya, Grace." He stood up and gave her a hug. She took a second and then walked down the steps.

She passed Lorelai's vehicle on the way and gave her a wave.

Lorelai got out of her car and walked up to the front porch. She sat next to her son. "How are you doing?"

"She's moving to California." Ryan said plainly.

Lorelai could hear the sadness in his voice. "I heard."

Ryan gave her a look. "How did you know? She just told me."

"I went to Grace's house to yell at her parents."

"Really?" Ryan was impressed.

"Yep."

"You did that for me?"

Lorelai nodded. "You know that I would do anything for you kid."

"Thanks, mom." He hoped that she knew how much he appreciated her.

"I'll be just fine."

Lorelai wrapped her arms around her son. Everything would be okay.

Or so she thought.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	64. Stubborn

**I am so sorry for the lack of updates. I went out of town and have not had a whole lot of time to write. I hope that there are still people reading this story.**

 **I hope you all enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 64: Stubborn**

It was officially summer break in Stars Hollow. The kids were thrilled, especially Ruby. She was already planning the pool party her mom had promised her for a late birthday party. She was positive that it was going to be a blast.

Rory was happy to have extra time to spend with Dean before he headed off to Chicago to spend the summer with his grandparents. After he left, she planned on reading as much as possible, if Paris would leave her alone long enough. She had already emailed Rory several times about Chilton and being fully prepared.

Ryan on the other hand was busy following Michel around per his mother's punishment. It really was the worst. Michel was the bossiest person he had ever met, and Ryan would much rather be outside enjoying his summer freedom. But instead he was stuck at the inn.

Lorelai was happy that the kids had survived their first year in Stars Hollow. They really seemed to be settling into their new lives. She on the other hand was completely stressed out. Her dad still hadn't gotten back to her about Christopher. She was hoping that was good news, but had a feeling that it wasn't. Christopher was up to something, and Lorelai was afraid to think of what it could be.

She was also stressing over Rory's school tuition. She was able to pay the enrollment fee but was struggling to find the money she would need for Rory to start school in September. She really could kill Christopher. This was all his fault, but she would have to figure something out. She always had in the past.

At the Inn, Ryan walked away from the counter with Michel following behind him. "I'm not doing that." Ryan said sternly.

"Yes you are." Michel snapped at the teenager. "Your mother said you were to help me with whatever I needed for the entire week." He reminded him. "You have not completed your week."

Ryan rolled his eyes. He would definitely had preferred to be grounded for a week. Anything would have been better than this.

"This week I have decided that I need my car washed." Michel wore a smug look on his face, and Ryan hated it. It made him even madder about the whole situation.

"My mom meant help with the Inn, not your personal business."

"She did not clarify if I remember correctly."

Ryan glared at him.

"My car needs to look good or else it might scare off the guests." Michel continued to smile smugly.

"If the guests are scared off it won't because of your car. That's for sure." Ryan rolled his eyes.

"I don't think that you are supposed to be arguing with me. Maybe we should talk to your mother about extending your punishment. I don't think that you have learned your lesson."

"Maybe we should tell her what a tyrant you are being."

Some of the guests were now staring at them.

"She already knows." Michel snapped. "It is who I am."

"Hey." Lorelai's voice interrupted anything Ryan was about to say back. He turned to face his mom. "What is with the raised voices? You two are making a scene." She pointed at the guests who tried to avert their eyes from the situation.

They both started talking over one another. Lorelai couldn't make out what either one of them were saying.

"Whoa. Whoa." She held out her hand. "I thought I was dealing with one teenager here." She looked at Michel. "What is going on?"

They both started talking again. Lorelai whistled. "Enough. Michel." She held up her hand to Ryan, daring him to say something else. He decided to remain quiet. She stared at Michel, waiting for him to give her an explanation.

Michel smiled at Ryan, if he had won the fight. "Your son." He pointed at Ryan. "Does not want to comply with his punishment."

"Because you are taking it too far."

"Uh huh." Lorelai waved her hand, quickly shushing her son.

"So says you." Michel said snidely. "The one who is in trouble."

"What do you want him to do, Michel?" She could only imagine.

"I just asked the boy to wash my car."

Lorelai gave him a look. That wasn't exactly what she had in mind when she set it all up.

"You did not give any guidelines when you asked me to watch your son for the week." Michel did his best at turning things around on Lorelai. That was his specialty.

"You are not watching me." Ryan said quickly and looked at his mom. "Tell him that I'm not washing his car. That's ridiculous." He crossed his arms.

"Lorelai, it is not too much to ask." Michel was not crossing his arms.

"Mom." Ryan continued to stare at his mom.

"Michel," Lorelai turned her attention to the man. "Can't you find a million things for him to do that involve the inn?"

Michel rolled his eyes. "There are always a million things that need to be done at the Inn, but I need him to wash my car."

"Fine." Lorelai agreed.

"Mom."

"Yes." Michel smiled victoriously.

"You can't be serious."

Lorelai held out her hand. "You'll wash his car."

"Do you hate me?"

Lorelai couldn't help but smile. "No hon. Michel, after he washes your car, he is done."

"Done?" Michel questioned. "He was supposed to help the entire week."

"If he washes your car, then he is done. Punishment over."

Ryan smiled. He now felt like he was the one that had won.

"That sounds reasonable." Ryan gave Michel a look.

"Lorelai. Seriously."

"That's the deal. I think it is a win-win for everyone." She clapped her hands together. "I'm going to help our guests. No more arguing." She warned both of them as she walked away.

Ryan shot Michel a look.

"I like my car to be sleek and shiny."

"Whatever, Michel." Ryan rolled his eyes as he went off to find the things he needed to wash Michel's stupid car. At least he would be done and could officially begin his summer.

Michel skipped back to the desk. He was taking it as a win.

* * *

It had only taken Ryan about an hour to wash the car, much to his relief. He was excited that he could finally do whatever he wanted to, within reason. His plan was to sleep really late and hangout with Jess.

His first stop was to find his mom and tell her that he was headed out. He asked Michel where she was. Michel mumbled what Ryan was sure was an explicative and pointed to the kitchen.

Ryan should have known that was where she was. She spent a lot of time in the kitchen chatting with Sookie. He was about to enter when he heard his mom talking to Sookie about Chilton.

"I'll help in any way that I can."

"Sookie. Thanks. But I have to figure it out on my own."

"You can sell my car." Sookie thought quickly, as if she had figured it all out.

Lorelai shook her head. "Sook, hon, no one wants your car."

"True." She snapped her fingers. "You're right."

"There has got to be something. Something that I haven't thought about. God. Sookie. I can't imagine having to tell Rory that she can't go to Chilton because of money. We've been saving for years for their education. This is so unfair. I really could kill Christopher. Strangle him for putting us this in this situation. Rory deserves this." Lorelai sighed. "She has worked so hard, and she wants to go to Harvard or Yale. She needs this."

Ryan listened to his mom, and he agreed with everything that she was saying. There had to be something they could do to get the money they needed.

"What about…" Sookie started.

"No." Lorelai cut her off immediately. "Not an option. That is definitely not an option."

"I'm sure they would help."

Lorelai shook her head. "They already did. I don't want them to know. They can't know about this. There has to be something else."

Ryan thought about everything. Maybe his mom was right. She couldn't ask her parents for the money, but maybe he needed to ask his grandparents.

"Mom." He walked into the kitchen.

"Hey hon." She stopped talking about Chilton and smiled at him.

"Ryan. Oh. Ryan."

Ryan shook his head. Sookie was the most cheerful person that he had ever met.

"Are you done with the car?"

"All done." Ryan smiled. "Can I go?"

"You are off the hook." Lorelai smiled at her son. She was positive that he had learned his lesson. "Go have fun."

"Thanks, mom."

"Stay out of trouble." She warned.

Ryan nodded.

"Have a cookie." Sookie held out the cookie plate.

Ryan took a bite of one. "Delicious."

Sookie smiled, happy with herself.

"See ya at home." Lorelai told him.

Ryan waved at both of them and walked out of the kitchen.

"I should get back to work." Lorelai told her friend.

"Don't worry about Chilton." Sookie touched Lorelai's shoulder. "We will figure it out."

"Thanks, Sook." She didn't know what she would do without Sookie.

* * *

Rory, Dean, and Ruby were hanging out in the town square.

Ruby was sitting on the steps of the gazebo, writing in her notebook. Dean and Rory were sitting on the gazebo bench holding hands and making lovey eyes at one another. "I'm going to miss you." Rory told Dean.

"I'm going to miss you more."

"Ewe." Ruby said as she stood in front of them. "Gross."

"Ruby that's not very nice."

"You two are too much." She sat between the, tearing their hands apart.

Rory and Dean shared looks. Rory knew when her mom asked her to watch Ruby for the day that she and Dean wouldn't get much alone time together. Ruby never let them.

"What ya, writing." Dean asked Ruby.

She held onto to her notebook proudly. She was excited about her upcoming late birthday party. "It is my birthday party guest list. My mommy said that we could send invitations."

"Am I invited?" Dean asked.

"Yes." Ruby nodded. "My sister gets a plus one."

Rory laughed.

"I can't come unless I'm her plus one?" Dean asked playfully.

"No. That would be weird if you weren't Rory's date."

"True." Dean nodded.

"You can be my plus one." Rory chimed in.

"Cool." Dean smiled. "I like a pool party."

"It is going to be the best pool party ever. My mommy throws the best parties."

"It is true. Lorelai Gilmore is the best party planner around." Rory explained to Dean.

"I can't wait until your birthday." Dean told her.

"Why wait? Mine is going to be better." Ruby informed him.

"So who else is on your list?" Rory asked.

"Miss Patty, Babette, Luke, Davey, Sookie, Jackson, you guys, Lane, and some of my friends from school." Ruby showed her sister the list.

"That's a lot of people." Dean played along with her.

"Dad is on your list." Rory noticed. "His name is circled. Why do you have his name circled?"

"I don't think he'll come. He never does. I probably shouldn't even invite him." Ruby went to mark thru his name.

"No." Rory stopped her. She wasn't happy with her father. He had made a lot of mistakes, but she didn't want Ruby to know all of that. Maybe just maybe her dad would make up for all of his mistakes by being a better father to Ruby. "You should leave him on the list."

Dean gave her a look. He didn't know much about their dad besides he was absent for almost everything. He was afraid that Ruby would get her hopes up, and maybe Rory would too. "I bet your dad really wants to come, but if he can't come, it is probably because something important came up."

Ruby looked up at him. "Really? You think so?"

Dean and Rory both nodded.

"You should definitely keep him on the list." Rory encouraged her sister.

"Yay." Ruby stood up. "Can we go to the library? I want to pick out a few books for my birthday present."

Rory stood up. "I thought mom already gave you a birthday present?"

Ruby nodded. "She did on my birthday, but she has to get me something else for my birthday party. They are two different things."

"Okay." Rory couldn't argue with her logic. "Let's go."

Ruby skipped off of the gazebo with Dean and Rory following behind her. As they were walking, Rory couldn't help but feel like something was off. She looked behind her.

"Are you okay?" Dean noticed the look on her face.

"I feel like someone is watching us."

Dean shook his head. "Yeah probably so. This is Stars Hollow. Everyone is watching."

"I'm being serious."

"Me too." Dean laughed.

"You are right. I'm being ridiculous." Rory shook it off.

Dean pointed to Ms. Patti, who was standing at the door of her dance studio. "See. Always watching."

Rory nodded. Dean was absolutely right. It was nothing.

* * *

Richard Gilmore opened the front door after several rings of the doorbell. He was sure where the maids were hiding, but he was certainly capable of answering the door for himself.

"Grandpa." Ryan said nervously. He wasn't expecting his grandpa to open the door. He thought he was going to have a little more time to prepare his thoughts.

"Ryan. Well this is a nice surprise. Come in." He motioned for the boy to enter.

Ryan walked into the mansion. Richard looked behind his grandson for Lorelai.

"I'm actually by myself." Ryan confirmed.

"What do I owe the pleasure?" Richard asked happily. He really did miss seeing his grandchildren on a regular basis.

"I need to talk to you. Is grandma around?"

As if on cue, Emily walked into the foyer. "Richard, who was at the…Ryan." She smiled at the sight of her grandson. "What on earth brings you by today?" She hugged her grandson. "We weren't expecting you."

"I know." Ryan nodded, suddenly feeling as if he had made a mistake. "I need to talk to you about something."

"Is everything alright?" Emily asked immediately.

"Um…" Ryan wasn't sure how to begin. "Can we go sit down?" He looked down as he asked, causing Richard and Emily to share looks of concern.

"Sure." Richard touched the boys shoulder. "Let's go right this way."

Ryan followed his grandparents to the sitting room. They sat first, and Ryan sat directly across from them. He sighed quietly. He wasn't sure how his mom was going to react about the decision that he had made. He had almost changed his mind a few times, but in the end, he remembered that his mom taught him that sometimes it was better to ask for forgiveness instead of permission.

"Would you like something to drink?" Richard offered.

Ryan shook his head. "No sir. I'm fine."

"Ryan, does your mother know that you are here?" She had a feeling that Lorelai had no idea where her son was.

Ryan shook his head. "No." He wasn't going to lie to them. It wouldn't do him any good.

"You should never get on the bus without telling your mother." Richard scolded.

"I know, but this is important."

"I'm sure your mother would have brought you here, if you had asked." Richard countered.

Ryan nodded. "Yes. I know."

"You didn't want her to know that you were coming." Emily figured.

"Right."

"What's wrong?" Richard asked.

"We need help." Ryan finally said it.

That didn't give his grandparents much information. "What kind of help?" Emily asked.

"Rory got into Chilton." Ryan told them, although he knew that it wasn't a secret.

"Oh yes. We know. She called to tell us."

"There was never any doubt that she would get in."

"Right. That's not really the problem." Ryan admitted.

"Well grandson, I think you need to tell us what the problem is." Richard was beginning to get nervous.

"Well." Ryan took a breath. "I um…Maybe…I shouldn't be here." He started to stand up.

"Ryan. Wait." Emily motioned for him to sit down. "You are already here. No need to leave."

"You are making us incredibly nervous." Richard told him.

"We can't afford Chilton." Ryan admitted, looking down at the carpet while he spoke.

Emily and Richard looked at each other oddly. "Ryan." Emily was the first to speak. "I'm sorry but that doesn't make sense to me."

"We set up an account for your education years ago." Richard added. "We have been putting money in it for years."

"So have Straub and Francine. Although not nearly as much as we have." Emily noted. Emily and Richard had always been closer to the kids than Straub and Francine. The kids didn't mind. Ryan really disliked his other grandparents. Francine, specifically, had never been that nice to him. She always fussed at him for dumb reasons. But all of that was beside the point now.

Ryan was sitting in front of his grandparents waiting for the inevitable questions.

"Your parents have also put money in that account." Richard was still trying to wrap his mind around it all.

"This has to be some kind of mistake."

"It isn't a mistake. A good bit of the money is gone."

"Why is the money gone?" Richard didn't mean to say the words so harshly.

Ryan sighed. "Dad took it."

"What?" Richard was shocked.

"Why would he do something like that?" Emily asked. She couldn't believe it.

"We don't know why." Ryan said honestly. "But he did it and now mom can't afford to pay for all of Chilton. Rory has to go to Chilton. It's important."

"Yes she does. We know." Richard was now more worried than ever.

"Mom is stressed out about it. She is trying to hide it, but I overheard her talking."

"You were ease dropping?" Emily figured.

"No. Well. Not really." Ryan shook his head. "This isn't fair for her. She does so much for us, and now she has to deal with this because of dad. That sucks. She shouldn't have to worry about this."

"This is absurd." Emily was having a hard time understanding what her grandson was saying. "Christopher wouldn't do something like this."

Richard patted her leg. He hadn't told her about his conversation with Lorelai. He was waiting until his team of people could give him more information. They were still investigating Christopher. They hadn't been able to find the man yet. "Emily."

"Richard." She looked at her husband. "Do you know something that I don't know?"

Richard gave her a knowing look, and she knew that he would explain things to her after Ryan left.

"I'll write you the check." Richard stood up. "Do you know the amount needed?"

"No sir."

"I will leave it blank. Tell your mother that she can fill in the amount."

Ryan nodded.

"I have a feeling your mother isn't going to be very happy about all of this." Emily warned him.

Ryan nodded. "I'm hoping she'll be relieved that she doesn't have to worry about it now, that she won't be upset with me."

"Are we talking about the same Lorelai Gilmore?"

Ryan made a face as he stood up.

"Let me get that check." Richard said as he gave Ryan's shoulder a squeeze. Ryan was very thankful for his grandparents.

"Thank you."

"I'm sorry that your father did this to you." Emily told her grandson.

Ryan shook his head. "He didn't do it to me, but it is okay. We will be okay because we have mom."

Emily nodded.

* * *

Lorelai and Luke were cuddled on Lorelai's couch. Luke ran his fingers through her hair. "I can't believe that we are in this house alone. That never happens."

"I know." Lorelai smiled. "What are we going to do with ourselves?" She asked playfully as she leaned in and kissed him.

"I have a few ideas. How long do you think we have?"

"Rory is at a movie with Dean. Ruby is with Sookie." As Lorelai explained everything, Luke ran his hands up and down her body. She giggled at his touch and playfulness. "And I am not really sure where Ryan is. I was actually expecting him to be home."

"Maybe he is with Jess."

"Maybe so."

"Which means we have some time?" He kissed her quickly and passionately.

She moved over so that she could rub his shoulders. "What should we do with our time?"

"I have a few ideas." He whispered in her ear and then kissed her neck.

"I think that is a wonderful way to spend our time."

They continued to kiss and fell back onto the couch. Luke positioned himself on top of her.

The front door opened, and Ryan walked in. "Mom." He made his way into the living room.

"Ryan." Lorelai said as she jumped up, throwing Luke off the couch. "You're home."

"I can leave again." He pointed to Luke, who was still on the floor.

"No. No. No." Lorelai shook her head.

"If you guys are busy." Ryan couldn't help but smile. He knew what they were about to do.

"We are not busy. There was a loose…The leg on the couch was loose." Luke told him as he stood up.

"Is it fixed?" Lorelai asked with a chuckle.

"All fixed." Luke felt awkward.

"How was your first day of summer?" Lorelai asked, trying to change the subject.

"Good."

"What did you do?" She asked.

Ryan shrugged.

"Where did you go?"

Ryan was positive that his face showed guilt.

"What's going on?" Lorelai was now more curious. "Why don't you want to tell me where you were and what you were doing?"

"IwasinHartford." Ryan said quickly.

"What?" Lorelai shook her head. She must have heard him incorrectly. "Did you just say that you were in Hartford?'

Ryan nodded. "Yeah. That's where I was."

Lorelai stood up. "Why were you in Hartford?"

"I um." He didn't know how to tell her. "Here." He handed her the envelope with the check that his grandfather had given to him.

"What's this?" Lorelai looked at the envelope. Her son was being very weird. She opened the envelope. "Oh no. Ryan." She looked up at her son. "You didn't."

Luke looked at both of them, trying to figure out what was happening.

"Ryan, please tell me that this is some kind of joke." Lorelai just kept shaking her head. He didn't do this. She couldn't believe he would do this.

"Now you don't have to worry about Chilton. Grandpa said you could write the amount needed."

"No." Lorelai said firmly.

Luke finally had an idea of what was going on.

"Yes. It is that easy. They were cool with it." Ryan told her simply.

"I don't care if they was cool with it." Lorelai said loudly.

Ryan knew that she was mad. He had expected her to be mad, but he was surprised by how mad she actually seemed.

"How much did you tell him?" She looked at her son's face. "You told him everything. Ryan that was not your business."

"It is my business." He found himself getting upset with her. "This has everything to do with me."

"I told you that I was handling it." Lorelai could feel her blood boiling, not only at Ryan. "I have it under control. You had no right to go to your grandparents."

"You are just being stubborn." Ryan yelled at his mom. He hadn't meant to say it so loudly, but she was making him mad.

"Excuse me." She sat the check down on the side table.

"It's true. You didn't want to ask for help. So I did it for you. They don't want anything in return. They understand."

Lorelai shook her head. "Your grandparents always want something in return. This is gonna cost us."

"That's ridiculous."

"The fact that you went behind my back is what is ridiculous." Lorelai couldn't stop shaking. "This is unbelievable."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "Just write the amount on the check and deposited in the bank. I'm sure you don't even have to thank them."

"Ryan." Lorelai sighed. "I'm the mother. You are the kid. I know you like to think that you are the man of the house, but you aren't. Okay. You had no right to go to your grandparents about this. I don't care how stubborn you think that I was being. It's my right to be stubborn if that's what I want to be."

"Hey guys come on. Maybe we should sit down and take a minute." Luke suggested.

"Luke. This is between me and Ryan. Just stay out of it." Lorelai snapped and immediately regretted it once she saw the look on Luke's face. "Luke. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I should go." Luke told her. "I'll see you tomorrow." He told both of them before walking out of the house.

Lorelai was going to stop him but decided it was probably best to let him go.

Ryan was giving her a look. "Mom."

"I don't want to talk about it, Ryan. Just go to bed."

"But mom."

"Ryan." She said sternly. "We're done."

"Grandma and Grandpa didn't."

"Ryan. Go to bed. I mean it. I'm not talking about this with you anymore." She told him before she stomped off upstairs.

Ryan had not realized how mad she would actually be at him. He glanced over at the check that was sitting on the table. She had to deposit it.

* * *

Upstairs, Lorelai sat on her bed and cried. She hated that Christopher had put her in this situation. It wasn't fair.

She wasn't stubborn.

Ryan shouldn't have gone to her parents.

She was going to fix this.

She wasn't going to deposit that check.

There had to be another way.

* * *

 **I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I plan to update a lot sooner this time. Let me know what you thought!**


	65. Confession

**I did it. I did it. I wanted to post another chapter this week. You guys deserve it. Hopefully I'll get the next one written over the weekend. It's beginning to wrap up I think. Slowly but surely.**

 **Anyways, thanks for all the support. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. It's not a good one for the Ryan and Lorelai relationship. Bare with me!**

 **A Place to Call Home **

**Chapter 65: Confession**

Lorelai laid awake in bed. She had barely slept all night. She hated fighting with any of the kids, and she definitely felt bad about the way she had yelled at Luke. He didn't deserve that. He had been her rock for so many months now. She needed to make up with him as soon as possible.

She heard Ryan's door creep open. She glanced over at the clock. It was barely 6 O'clock. Way too early for Ryan. She knew he was attempting to avoid her. That was a great thought. She didn't really want to talk to him right now either, but she knew that she couldn't let him leave the house that early without knowing where he was going.

Lorelai pulled herself out of bed and reluctantly walked downstairs. She was just in time to see Ryan about to walk out the door. "Ryan." She said softly, not wanting to wake Rory up.

Ryan cringed. He was so close. He thought he was being quiet enough. He figured she must have been awake. Honestly, he hadn't slept either. He slowly took his hand off the door and turned to face his mom.

"Where are you going so early?" She asked.

Ryan sighed. He didn't actually know the answer to that question. His only plan was to avoid his mom. He had already failed. "I don't know." He decided not to lie. "I wanted to find a quiet place to read."

Lorelai tilted her head and gave him a look. "Oh here I thought you were just trying to avoid me."

"That too." Ryan looked down at the ground. He knew that she was still mad at him, and he was still mad at her too.

"Ryan."

"Mom. I don't think we should talk about it. I think you are wrong. You think I'm wrong. I don't really feel like fighting with you." Ryan told his mom. It was way too early for a fight.

"Well good. I don't want to fight with you either, but I do think that we need to talk about what you did."

Ryan narrowed his eyes. "What I did? Really. Why don't we finally talk about what dad did? You are just letting him get away with everything." He said angrily.

Lorelai took a moment. She could see anger his eyes. She hated it. "I'm not letting him get away with anything." Lorelai felt that was the truth.

"Yes you are, and it really sucks." Ryan crossed his arms.

"Ryan. I know that you don't understand…"

"You are right, mom. I don't understand." Ryan cut her off. "We aren't going to agree on this."

"Right." Lorelai sighed. "We aren't."

"You have made it pretty clear that I'm the kid and you are the parent, and my opinion on the matter doesn't amount to anything."

"Ryan, that is not true." That wasn't exactly what she meant when she had said it the night before.

"It is true." Ryan wasn't backing down. "It is none of my business."

"Ryan." Lorelai really didn't know what else to say. He clearly wasn't going to listen to her.

"Whatever mom." Ryan rolled his eyes. He knew that he was pushing her buttons and his luck.

"Hey." Lorelai snapped. "I don't like that tone."

Ryan was quiet for a moment, as was his mom. Neither Gilmore willing to concede. "I think it is crazy if you don't deposit the check." He broke the silence. "You didn't want grandma and grandpa to know what dad did, but now they do. So what's the big deal?" He glared at his mom.

"The big deal?" Lorelai tried to control her emotions, but she was even more frustrated with her son than she had been the night before. It was way too early for this conversation. She hadn't even had her morning cup of coffee. "The big deal is that you shouldn't have done it. You should have talked to me first. Going behind my back was unproductive and wrong." Lorelai looked at her son. "I know you were trying to help." She really did know what he was trying to do, but it wasn't the way to go about it. "I didn't need your help. Not this way."

"Fine." Ryan stepped back to the door. "Can I go now?"

"Depends." Lorelai said quickly. "Where are you going?"

"Not to Hartford." Ryan said sarcastically.

"Okay. Good. Because you aren't allowed to leave Stars Hollow without my permission. What if something would have happened to you?" Lorelai asked him. "I wouldn't have known where you were."

"I was with my grandparents. Can't I spend time with them?"

"Yes of course you can see them, but I need to know when you're going. You know that." Lorelai argued. "It isn't like you really liked visiting them when we lived five minutes away." She reminded him.

Ryan sighed. "Nothing happened to me. I was fine. Rory is going to have to ride the bus everyday if she gets to go to Chilton."

"Rory is going to Chilton."

"Yeah. So you say." Ryan snapped at her.

"And when she does go to Chilton, at least I will know that she is on the bus." Lorelai told him. "So tell me where you are going today? Especially so early in the morning." Lorelai asked again.

"Anywhere but here." He took another step towards the door.

Lorelai sighed and shook her head. "You know if you can't tell me where you are going then you can't go. That's always been the rule, and it hasn't changed." She warned.

Ryan sighed. "Fine." He threw his hands up in the air. "I'm going to my room. I'll be there all day." He decided he could read his book in his room, and he knew that was probably what she wanted anyway.

"Ryan." Lorelai called after him as he walked past her.

He turned back to face her. "Don't worry mom. I'll be safely tucked away in my room. You won't have to worry about me going back to the grandparents and ruining things for you." With that said he walked upstairs.

Lorelai dropped her head. This day was starting off worse than the previous day had ended.

"Mom."

Lorelai looked up to see Rory standing in the small hallway. "Rory, hon. What are you doing up?" Lorelai already knew the answer.

"You and Ryan were basically yelling outside of my room. What's going on with the two of you?"

"Nothing." Lorelai shuffled past her daughter. She needed coffee and fast.

"Mom." Rory followed behind her mom. "I don't like this."

"Like what?" Lorelai turned towards her daughter.

"You are keeping things from me." Rory said with her hands on her hips. Reminiscent of Ruby's behavior on most days.

"Rory." Lorelai closed her eyes. She grabbed the coffee can and filter to start making her coffee.

"Come on mom. I can tell that you aren't telling me everything. That's not how we work." She pointed between the two of them. "We are supposed to tell each other everything." Rory could see the look on her mom's face. "Why are you and Ryan fighting?"

"Rory." Lorelai didn't know how to tell her nor did she want to tell her. "I really don't want to talk about this." She fidgeted with the coffee pot.

"What does it involve?" She obviously wasn't going to let it go. "I heard him say something about grandma and grandpa and a check. What check?"

"You aren't going to let this go, are you?" Lorelai realized.

"I am a Lorelai." She pointed at her mom.

Lorelai sighed. "Sit." She pointed at the table. Rory did as her mom had instructed. Lorelai followed. "Rory. I wasn't honest with you about a couple of things."

"What things?" Rory looked at her mom, almost afraid of what she could have kept from her.

"I don't have enough money for Chilton." Lorelai hated saying the words. It shouldn't be something that she had to worry about, but it was. She really hated the look she was now seeing on Rory's face.

"Oh." Was all her daughter could say.

"But I'm going to figure it out. I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to worry."

"I don't have to go to Chilton." Rory told her mom.

Lorelai shook her head. "Yes you do. Not going to Chilton is not an option. Understood." Lorelai looked at her daughter. Rory didn't say anything. "Rory. Understood. That is not an option."

Rory nodded. "Okay. But what are we going to do?"

Lorelai didn't respond.

"This is because of dad, right?"

Lorelai nodded.

"Ugh. I can't believe him."

"Honey." Lorelai really didn't know what to say.

"How did Ryan get involved?" Rory questioned. Her brother was always trying to protect her.

"He is getting really good at ease dropping." Lorelai admitted. "He took it upon himself to tell your grandparents about everything. They sent him home with a blank check. Can you believe that? A fifteen year old."

"Wow." Rory's face lit up. "That's good news, right?"

Lorelai shook her head, actually surprised by Rory's reaction. "No. Rory. I can't accept that check."

"Why not?" Now Rory was the one who was confused.

"Rory."

"I know you have never been a big fan of taking money from them or anything for that matter, but this is different. There doesn't seem to be another option."

"There has to be another option." Lorelai sighed. "Rory, they have already given us a lot of money."

"I know that, but we don't have that money anymore because of dad. If they are willing to give us the money, I don't understand why we can't accept it."

Lorelai was tired of trying to explain this to her kids.

Rory looked at her mom and could tell that she was struggling. "I'm sorry mom."

"Oh hon. You have nothing to apologize for."

Rory wrapped her arms around her mom. "I know you will take care of it. You've never let us down before."

"You trust me to make this decision."

Rory nodded. "I hate that you have to make this decision in the first place. We shouldn't have to worry about it, but I get it." Rory did understand, but she secretly hoped that her mom would change her mind. If her grandparents were willing to help them, then her mom should let them.

"Thank you." Lorelai was relieved. "I should go get ready for work."

"Okay." Rory told her mom.

Lorelai grabbed a cup of coffee.

"Hey mom."

"Yeah sweets." Lorelai turned towards her daughter.

"Don't be so mad at Ryan. He was trying to help."

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah. I know." She had a half smile. "Don't worry about this okay." She walked back to Rory and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "You are going to go to Chilton, and you are going to have a great year, even with Paris driving you up the wall. I am going to take care of it. I'll always take care of you kids. You never have to worry about that."

"I never have." Rory smiled at her mom.

"I love you, kid." Lorelai gave her one more hug.

"I love you too." Rory hoped that it would all work out for the best. She knew that her mom would make it work. She always had. But it was still nerve wracking.

* * *

A little later Lorelai walked into the diner holding a blue baseball cap. Luke was standing behind the counter having just finished serving a customer a cup of coffee. "Hi." Lorelai said softly as she walked behind the counter.

"Luke." Kirk said from the corner table. "Why is she allowed behind the counter? You kicked me out the last time. Literally. Kicked me out the front door. I may still have bruises."

"Don't try it again." Luke glared at the man. He focused his attention back to Lorelai.

"Do you have a minute?" She asked, her voice sounding more nervous than it should have. She felt guilty.

Luke nodded. "Caesar I'm going to the back. I'll be a minute."

"Got it boss." Caesar hollered from the back.

"I can man the counter for you." Kirk started to stand up. "I've been practicing."

"Not a chance, Kirk." Luke scowled. He then led Lorelai to the storage room.

She handed him the baseball cap she was holding. "Here. Peace Offering."

Luke shook his head and smiled slightly. "Lorelai. You didn't have to -"

"Yes I did." She cut him off. "I'm so sorry for snapping at you last night."

"I understand. You were stressed out. You didn't have to get me a cap to prove you were sorry."

"Have you seen the one that you are wearing?" She laughed. "You needed this. I've just been waiting for an excuse to buy you a new one." She admitted.

Luke switches out his cap for the new one. "Perfect fit." He smiled as he threw the other cap down. He didn't need it anymore.

"I think so." She took his hand. "I really am sorry about how I acted." She couldn't apologize enough.

Luke shook it off. "You were upset. I shouldn't have tried to butt in and give my two cents. You didn't ask for it."

"No." She shook her head. "Luke, I want you to give your two cents."

Luke sighed. "I've never really dated someone with kids. I'm trying to figure out my place with them. I don't know how all of this is supposed to work."

"You are so good with them, Luke. Especially Ryan. He needs that. So please don't stop trying with them because of me." She would hate that.

"I won't." Luke reassured her. "We are okay." He kissed her forehead. "I promise."

"Good. I don't think I could handle it if we weren't okay." It was the truth. She knew how lucky she was to have Luke in her life. She rested her head in his arms, and Luke rubbed her back.

"How's Ryan?"

"Mad at me, but that is nothing new." Lorelai rolled her eyes. "I'm not too happy with him either." She looked at Luke's face. "What's on your mind?"

"Are you sure you want to hear my thoughts?" Luke narrowed his eyes.

Lorelai nodded. "Yes. I want to know what you think."

"Even if it may not be what you want to hear."

"I promise to listen to the part I want to hear." Lorelai smiled at him.

"I'm being serious, Lorelai." He tilted his head. He really wanted her to take him serious. He wasn't sure how she was going to feel about what he was going to say.

"Me too." She poked him. "Seriously, Luke. Tell me what you think."

"I think that you should talk to your parents." Luke started.

"Luke." Lorelai closed her eyes. She knew that was what he was going to say.

"Just hear me out before you stop listening." Luke smiled. "Okay?"

"Okay." Lorelai nodded. "I'm listening."

"You didn't want them to know about Christopher, but now they do know. Whether you like it or not, they know the truth. You don't have to deposit the check, but you should still talk to them." Luke encouraged her. "They might surprise you."

"We have a better chance for an alien to walk into the diner and ask for a cup of coffee." Lorelai joked.

"Are you referring to Kirk?" Luke joked back.

"My parents are not really big on surprises. They have been the same way their entire lives." Lorelai informed them. "They are going to use this against me."

"This isn't your fault." Luke rubbed her shoulders. "You didn't ask for this. So you can't blame yourself. Okay."

Lorelai nodded.

Luke touched her face. Lorelai rested against his embrace. She felt comforted by his touch. She had never been with someone who could make all her worries seem so far away. "You are going to have to talk to them anyway. You should go ahead and get over with."

She sighed. "I know."

"Lorelai I want you to know that I…" Before he could finish his thought the door to the storage room opened.

"Uncle Luke." Jess walked in.

Luke slowly pulled away from Lorelai. "Jess."

"Oh sorry. I didn't know you were here." He said pointing at Lorelai. "Hey Lorelai."

"Hey Jess."

"What is it?" Luke asked his nephew.

"Can I go out?"

"Where you going?" Luke asked.

"Probably to the bridge."

"Go ahead." Luke didn't see any problem with it. "Be back in time to help me close."

"Alright." Jess turned to leave.

"Wait. Jess." Lorelai walked closer to him.

"Yeah Lorelai."

"Do you mind checking on Ryan? Don't tell him that though. Or that I sent you."

"Is he okay?"

"He has barricaded himself in his room." Lorelai said dramatically. "Because I had the audacity to ask him where he was going." She rolled her eyes. He really was her kid. It was exactly something she would have done as a teenager, and then snuck out the window. Classic.

"Oh." Jess nodded. "You got mad at him about going to Hartford, didn't you?" He asked.

Lorelai gave him a look. "He told you." She should have known.

Jess looked at his uncle and then back at Lorelai. "He told me he was going yesterday."

"And you didn't tell me?" Luke asked. He wasn't exactly mad but didn't want Jess to keep things from him.

"If you'd asked me where Ryan was, I would have told you the truth." Jess told them matter-of-factly.

"Fair enough." Luke nodded.

"He was just trying to help out." Jess told Lorelai as he walked out of the storage room.

Lorelai dropped her head and looked back at Luke. If only she had a dollar every time she had heard that this morning.

He smiled at her. "It is going to be okay." He reassured her with a kiss on the forehead.

She wanted to believe him. She really did, but her track record with her parents was telling her otherwise.

* * *

Ryan sat on his bed thinking about his fight with his mom. He knew that she wasn't going to be happy with him, but he never expected her to be that upset. He wasn't sure he had ever seen her so mad, and it really sucked. Because in this instance, he didn't think that he was wrong.

He looked up as he heard a knock on his door. Before he could say anything, the door opened and his twin sister appeared. "Hi."

"Hey." He said with a sigh.

"Can I come in?"

"You are already in." He pointed out.

"I thought I should at least do you the courtesy of asking."

Ryan smiled at his sister. She always had a comeback.

She walked further into the room. "So are you going to stay in here all day?" Rory asked as she sat on the edge of his bed.

"Maybe." He mumbled. "I'm catching up on my reading."

Rory picked up the book that was once sitting in front of her brother. "Seriously. Huckleberry Finn. How many times have you read this book?"

Ryan shrugged.

"Mom told me about dad." Rory admitted.

Ryan looked down, avoiding eye contact with his sister.

Rory could tell it was hard for him to think about. "She also told me that you went to grandma and grandpa for the money."

"Yeah." He finally looked at her. "Are you going to yell at me too?"

"No." Rory moved closer to her brother.

"Are you going to hit me?" He asked confused, not sure what she was doing.

"You are silly." She leaned in and gave him a hug. "Thank you."

"Really?" He was still confused. It was not the reaction he was anticipating.

Rory nodded. "I'm lucky to have a brother that looks out for me like you do. I know that it was a pretty big deal for you to go to them for help. I also know that you knew mom wouldn't be happy about it."

"She's pretty pissed."

"She'll be okay. You know she has to react, process, and then make-up. It is kind of her thing." Rory smiled.

"She needs to deposit that check." Ryan said adamantly. "She is just being stubborn."

"Didn't you know that is her middle name?" Rory joked.

"You are trying to make me feel better. I hate when you do that. I want to be mad."

"Don't be mad." Rory didn't want him to be upset over all of this. "Mom told me that she would handle it. She has never given us any reason to doubt her. I'm going to Chilton if I have to start digging for buried treasure or sell a kidney or something."

Ryan chuckled. "You probably have a better chance of selling the kidney."

"Yeah. That's what I was thinking." Rory touched her shoulder. "You really are the best brother around."

"Rory."

"You are. Don't ever forget it." She stood up. "I'm going to hang out with Lane. Do you want to come?"

"No." He shook his head. "I think I'll just stay here. Maybe the book will end differently this time."

Rory smiled and walked to the door.

"Hey Ror." Ryan called out to her.

"Yeah Ry."

"Why do you seem so calm about all of this?" He wondered. "You don't seem mad at dad at all."

"I'm a little mad." She admitted. "But I told myself a long time ago that dad wasn't worth getting upset over. If I let what he does bother me, I'd always be upset. I don't want to live like that. So I choose to forgive him. It doesn't mean that I want him to come back in our lives or mom to ever get back together with him. But I just can't worry about it. I know that mom will take care of it. She always does." Rory knew she was right. She wasn't sure how her mom would handle it, but she would.

Ryan smiled at his sister. "You are the smartest of us all."

"Oh no. That's definitely Ruby." Rory laughed. "See ya, Ryan."

"See ya, Rory." Ryan was glad that she came to talk to him. Sometimes he needed the wisdom of his sister to make him feel better.

* * *

Lorelai stood at the big, scary doors of the Gilmore mansion. She had been standing there for some time, not ready to go in and confront them about the check. If she were being honest with herself, she was mad at them for giving Ryan the check in the first place. They should have sent him away, but that was not how the Gilmores did things. They were probably happy with themselves. Ryan never went to them for anything. He was that much like his mother.

She sighed and let out a slight chuckled as she had a conversation with herself. She hoped there weren't cameras. It had finally hit her. Ryan would not have gone to his grandparents unless he thought there was no other option.

She went to knock but the door opened before she could. "Mom. Dad." They were both standing on the other side staring at her. What happened to the maid, she wondered.

"Lorelai," her father spoke. "We were expecting you."

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Here goes nothing she thought as she walked in the house and the door shut behind her. There was no turning back now.

* * *

 **I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. I think the Ryan and Rory talk was one of my favorites that I have written.**

 **Let me know what you thought! I will try to post as soon as I can!**


	66. Conditions

**As always you guys are the best. I appreciate all the reviews. I'm happy to have people still interested in the story.**

 **This chapter ended up being pretty long.**

 **I hope you all enjoy.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 66: Conditions**

A few minutes had passed, since Lorelai had arrived at her parents. They had all taken a seat in the formal living room. Her father had offered her drink. She had asked for coffee. Her mom snickered. She never got the coffee.

They were now silently staring at each other, like they had done when Lorelai was a child and a teenager. It was usually her mother who broke the silence, but today it was her father. "Lorelai, we know why you are here." Richard stated, as if Lorelai was trying to keep the reason for her visit a secret.

Lorelai pulled the check out of her purse.

"There it is." Emily said once she saw it. "Of course you wont accept it."

Lorelai narrowed her eyes at her mother. "I never said I wasn't accepting it." She told her mother quickly. "I'm here because you never should have given a fifteen year old boy a blank check. Good thing Ryan is an honest kid. He could have stopped by several arcades on his way home. Might have won the big teddy bear."

"Lorelai. Our grandson came here because he was concerned. He asked for our help. We weren't going to turn him away." Richard told his daughter. "I doubt that was what you really wanted us to do."

"You could have told him to go back to Stars Hollow and talk to his mom." Lorelai tried to keep her emotions together. She didn't want to get into a huge fight with her parents. "He should have talked to me. I am his mom."

"We know that, Lorelai." Emily gave Lorelai a sympathetic look. "He was worried about you and his sister. He was upset about Christopher. We couldn't turn him away."

"We knew you wouldn't deposit the check without coming here first." Richard clarified. "We also trusted that Ryan was going to give you the check. We had no reason to believe otherwise."

"He was nervous about coming here in the first place. We could tell." Emily added. "He knew that you'd be mad, but it was important to him. He took the risk."

"I didn't want to bother the two of you with this." Lorelai sighed and shook her head. "I could handle it."

"I already knew that Christopher was in trouble. My guys are still looking into it." Richard looked at Emily. "I had to tell your mother everything. She wasn't too happy with me for keeping things from her. Especially something like this."

"But I understood." Emily touched Richard's hand to reassure him. "I know that you didn't want me to know." She looked at her daughter.

"I didn't want anyone to know." Lorelai confirmed. "I don't know what Christopher has gotten himself into, and honestly I don't care as long as he keeps my kids out of it." She meant it. She was done with Christopher, but if his actions were going to hurt her children, she needed to know what he was involved in. Richard's guys were still investigating. Truth was no one could find Christopher. It seemed he had dropped off of the ends of the earth.

"Lorelai, he stole from you. There needs to be consequences." Emily thought it was outrageous that Lorelai didn't want to do anything about it. "That was not his money."

"His name was on the count."

"That's a technicality."

"Yeah. Exactly. There is nothing I can do." Lorelai fought back. "Actually I want to forgive it ever even happened."

"Demand that he give you the money back." Emily wasn't letting it go. "I'm sure we can talk to our lawyer. He would take Christopher for everything he is worth."

"Emily." Richard said softly.

"This is why I didn't want you to know." Lorelai said loudly. "Obviously Christopher isn't worth anything. Otherwise he wouldn't have stolen from his children's education." She tried to reason with her mother. She didn't know why she bothered. You couldn't really reason with Emily Gilmore.

"Lorelai, your mother does not mean to stress you in anyway."

"Seriously. Dad. Have you met mom?" She said sarcastically.

"Lorelai."

"This was a mistake." Lorelai stood up. "I shouldn't have come here. I should have just torn the check up."

"Lorelai. Wait. Don't go." Richard stood up and Emily followed suit.

"I won't say another word." Emily promised.

Lorelai rolled her eyes at that thought. She knew her mother had never learned the definition of silent.

"Fine." She conceded and sat back down as did her parents.

"But before I'm completely silent, can I say one more thing." Emily couldn't help herself.

Lorelai rolled her eyes but decided to let it go. "Of course. I knew you would."

"I wish that you would have come to us when you and Christopher started having problems. Maybe we could have helped fix it. Maybe he wouldn't have done this."

Lorelai shook her head. "I was sixteen and pregnant."

"Excuse me."

"That's when Christopher and I started having problems. Getting married didn't fix it. It just made it worse."

"Lorelai."

"I know mom. You get pregnant. You get married. That's how it works. But in my case it didn't work. I was still raising those kids on my own." Lorelai had heard that speech so many times, she dreamed about it over and over again. "We gave up so much for Christopher. Every single day I think about what my life would have been like if I hadn't married Christopher. If I had just had enough courage to do what I wanted to do. What I thought was best for Ryan and Rory at the time."

Emily didn't say anything else. She wasn't exactly sure what to say. She knew that nothing she would say would fix it.

"I am very appreciative of everything that you two have done for us over the years. Don't get me wrong. I don't take it for granted that my kids had opportunities they may not have been afforded if the two of you weren't in their lives." Lorelai wanted them to know that. "But for the first time in my life I feel like I am making my own decisions. I'm actually in charge. I don't have to answer to anyone. I'm not trying to prove myself anymore." She took a moment.

Richard and Emily listened without saying anything. They knew she was referring to them. They had put a lot of pressure on her over the years.

"I'm happy. The kids are happy. Stars Hollow has been a good thing for all of us." It was the absolute truth. Stars Hollow was her happy place. "Moving there was the best thing that I have ever done for my family.

"We understand that, Lorelai." Richard told her. "But that is not why you are here." He thought they shouldn't dwell on anything else. They'd probably never agree with her on Stars Hollow and moving away. There was no need for them to fight about it.

Lorelai shook her head. She knew what her father was doing, and she was okay with it. They didn't need discuss anything but the real issue at hand. "You are right. I'm here because Rory got into Chilton, and I can't afford it."

Richard nodded.

"You gave Ryan this check yesterday." She held up the check. "And while I understand why he did it, and I even appreciate the gesture, it would not be right for me to accept this check."

"Lorelai, God, don't be so stubborn." Emily said frustratingly. "Chilton is one of the finest institutions in the state. Rory will have a lifetime of opportunities because of that school."

"Mom. Please let me finish." Lorelai motioned.

Emily nodded.

"I can't accept this check without a few conditions." Lorelai had thought about those conditions on the drive to Hartford. She had decided on the way over that she was going to accept the check. As much as she hated to admit it, there really was no other choice. She was out of options. "I fully intend to pay you back every cent plus interest."

"That is not necessary." Richard didn't need his daughter to pay him back.

"Yes it is. I can't accept the check, if you don't agree to it. That term is nonnegotiable." Lorelai held firm. "We can work something out officially, legally, whatever we need to do."

"Okay. If that is what you want. But again I say that it is not necessary."

"It is." Lorelai repeated.

"What are the other conditions?"

She looked at her mother. "This check does not mean that you have a say in the way that I raise them." She wanted her mom to know that. "The same rules still apply."

"Oh Lorelai." Emily sighed exasperatedly.

"Mom. You have to let me handle my children. This check cannot change that."

"Okay. That's fine. Take our money but nothing else. As long as Rory goes to Chilton, I don't care." Emily told her daughter. It wasn't exactly the truth. She would have a hard time not getting into their business, but she would try her best to respect Lorelai's decisions.

Lorelai smiled. Her mother was so difficult to figure out. "Also, the next time Ryan comes to either of you about something that you know he should be talking to me about, I want you to send him home to do just that." Lorelai also held firm on that condition as well. "Ryan likes to think he is the man of the house, and while technically he is, I am still his mom, the parent, and I need you two to help back me up on that."

"Okay Lorelai." Richard answered this time. "We will do our best."

"Is that all?" Emily asked. She felt it was weird that Lorelai was the one setting the conditions, when they were the ones giving her the money. Lorelai always had a way of turning things around. She must have gotten that trait from Emily.

"One more thing." Lorelai wasn't a hundred percent on this condition. She had actually gone back and forth on if it was a good idea or not, but she finally settled on it. This condition she was doing for Ruby and a little bit for her parents. "When we lived in Hartford, we had dinner here a lot."

"At least once a week." Emily remembered. She missed it so much.

Lorelai nodded. "Right. We should reinstate that." She could tell that her mother was intrigued. She would never tell them how much Ruby had missed seeing them almost every day. They didn't need to know that, but this would be good for her littlest daughter.

"You want to have weekly dinners?" Emily questioned.

If she were honest, no. She didn't mind the distance between her and her parents. "Yes. Weekly dinners." But she did care about the distance between her parents and her children. T

"Friday nights?" Emily questioned. Before they had been sporadic. There was no set day.

Lorelai gave her a look. She wasn't thinking of setting a particular day.

"We need a specific night." Emily had now taken control of the condition. "If there isn't a specific night then it won't happen. If it is already scheduled every week, you will know not to make plans."

Lorelai sighed. Her mother had a point, but why did she have to pick Friday.

"Friday is a good night because it is the beginning of the weekend. It won't throw the kids off from their weekly routine."

Another good point, Lorelai thought. "Okay. Weekly Friday night dinners." She still couldn't believe that she was doing this, but she wanted to give her parents something in return.

Emily's smile was as big as the entire house.

"Lorelai, again I repeat, you can have the money without any conditions or terms." Richard wanted to make sure that she understood that.

"I know that, dad, but I can't do that again. I need to do it this way."

"Alright."

"Have your lawyers draw up the paperwork." She reminded him.

Richard nodded. "First thing Monday morning." He smiled at his daughter. She always had a way of surprising him. This time it was actually in a good way.

"Thank you." She held up the check. "This means a lot to us, and I really am sorry that I even had to ask."

"Technically you didn't ask." Emily said quickly.

Lorelai nodded. She was right.

"You never have to be afraid to ask us for help, Lorelai. We have only ever wanted the best for you."

Lorelai wanted to roll her eyes but withheld the urge. "Thanks."

"We will start Friday night dinner after the summer." Emily told her happily.

"Sounds good." Lorelai stared at her parents. She was doing the right thing. She hoped that she was doing the right thing. She finally walked out of the room. To her surprise, Richard followed her.

"Lorelai."

"Yes dad." She turned to face him.

"I hope that I will have some information from my investigator. He thinks he has a lead."

"Good. Thanks, dad."

"Lorelai."

"I want to know what he has gotten himself into. I don't care about anything else. I just want to make sure that my kids are safe. Protecting them is all that matters to me."

"I know exactly what you mean. It is the only thing that matters to me too."

Lorelai did something that she didn't do often, she gave her father a quick hug. Richard was taken aback by it. He couldn't remember the last time she had hugged him like that.

Emily, who was watching from afar, was a little jealous. But at least she would have her Friday night dinner.

* * *

Ryan was still sitting up in his room reading his book. Rory was right. He had read Huckleberry Finn a thousand times before, but today felt like a Huckleberry Finn kind of day.

He heard a knock on his door and looked up, expecting to see his mom or sister. Instead, Jess walked into his room. "I thought we were meeting up today." Jess said as he made his way to Ryan's shelf and grabbed a baseball. He started tossing it in the air. "You could have called."

"Let me guess. My mom sent you." Ryan knew.

"You caught me." Jess continued to throw the ball in the air. "Why do you have this? You don't play baseball."

"Why are you throwing it in the air? You don't play baseball." Ryan countered.

Jess smirked. "You got me there."

"Sorry I didn't call." Ryan apologized. "I really didn't feel like leaving the house."

"I feel like you are trying to prove some kind of point to your mom. She's not here." Jess looked around the room. "I don't think you are proving anything to anyone. You are ruining the beginning of your summer break."

Ryan shrugged. "We've got plenty of summer for me to ruin."

Jess finally set on the edge of Ryan's bed, baseball still in hand. "I'm guessing your mom wasn't a big fan of your plan."

Ryan shook his head.

"You knew that she wasn't going to like it. I don't know why you are moping."

"I'm not moping."

"Yes you are." Jess wasn't going to let it go. "It's really embarrassing."

"Sorry to embarrass you."

"Not embarrassing me. You are embarrassing yourself. You are better than this." Jess tried to encourage him. "You just need to get over it. Your mom will get over it."

"I'm pissed at my dad. This is all his fault."

Jess nodded. "Yep. But there isn't a damn thing that you can do about it. You don't always have to cast yourself as the hero."

"I'm not the hero."

"Oh come on." Jess threw the ball softly at Ryan, who surprisingly caught it. "Maybe you should play baseball."

"Maybe."

"There are a lot of heroes that play baseball."

Ryan glared at him. "I'm not a hero."

"You are always trying to protect everyone, a lot like Luke." Jess made the comparison. "You need to stop worrying about your dad. We're fifteen. We shouldn't have to worry about all the mistakes our parents have made."

"My dad has made a hell of a lot of mistakes." Ryan hated all the things that his dad had done.

"Yeah. I know all about having parents who make mistakes. My dad didn't even want me. Never even met the guy. At least you know your dad."

"Sometimes I wish that I didn't." Ryan admitted.

"Well somedays I wish that I knew mine." Jess also admitted. He had never said it out loud. "Luke is great, but he isn't my dad."

Ryan nodded. "Have you ever thought about asking your mom about him?"

Jess chuckled. "My mom would probably never be sober enough to remember." It was the sad truth. "I'm fine with what I have. I just hope you realize that we are all screwed up, and there is nothing that we can do about it. You can't let your dad get you down. Just be thankful that your mom is around, and that she actually cares about you."

"You sound like a shrink." Ryan laughed.

"Might be my future profession." Jess joked as he stood up. "Come on. Let's go hangout at the music store or something."

"Alright. You've convinced me." Ryan stood up. "Thanks, Jess."

Jess nodded. He didn't need to say anything else.

Ryan was glad that he had a friend like Jess.

As they walked downstairs, Ryan stopped at the corner table and left his mom a note.

 _Mom,_

 _I am going to the music store with Jess. After that, I'll probably head to the bridge and read. Sorry about earlier. Not sorry about the check._

 _Ryan_

* * *

Lane and Rory walked out of the music store. "This is the year." Lane started. "I swear. It is my year."

"Your year for what?"

"The year that I start my band with your brother. Especially since Grace won't be here. He'll have plenty of time." Lane said excitedly. "He said he could play the guitar."

Rory nodded. "Yeah. He is pretty impressive. He will make a good member of your band, and I will make the best groupie."

"Of course." Lane couldn't stop smiling.

"But Lane, I think you are forgetting about one thing." Rory stopped Lane from walking.

"I'll hold auditions. I'll find the perfect bandmates."

Rory shook her head. "Your mom." She reminded her.

Lane shook her head. "Rory, I don't want to think about that. I want to pretend that I have a normal mom, who doesn't believe that everything I love is of the devil."

Rory smiled. "Okay. Sounds good. I'll pretend Mrs. Kim will be in the front row cheering you on."

"That's all that I ask." Lane touched Rory's shoulder. "You're a good friend." Lane pretended to play on the drums, and Rory cheered her on like a good fan.

As Lane turned around, she noticed that there was an unfamiliar car not too far away from them. "Rory." Lane grabbed her friend and tried to hide away behind one of the buildings.

"What are you doing?"

"I think that car is following us."

They peeked around the building and noticed the car was still sitting there.

"That's the same car that I saw the other day when I was with Dean. He told me to shrug it off, but I think I'm being followed."

"Why would someone follow you?" Lane wondered. "Do you have a book they want to read?"

Rory shrugged. "I don't know." She was becoming scared. "I think we should go back to Luke's and hangout for a while. Maybe until my mom gets home." Rory thought.

"Are you going to tell Luke?"

Rory shook her head. "No I don't think that is a good idea."

"You've got to tell your mom."

"I will." Rory promised.

"We should act like we didn't notice it."

"Okay."

The girls walked out from behind the building. The car was no longer there.

"Maybe we are imagining it." Rory thought.

Lane pointed. The car had made the loop and was further down than before. "We have got to get to Luke's." Lane told her.

Rory nodded in agreement and the girls headed back to Luke's with the car lingering around.

"Maybe you should ask Luke to walk you home." Lane suggested.

"He'll get suspicious."

"I don't care. Creepy car in Stars Hollow. This is serious."

"You're right." Rory sighed. She would let Luke walk her home, and then she would talk to her mom about it. Hopefully it was nothing to worry about.

* * *

Later in the day, Ryan was sitting on the bridge. He wasn't reading. He was just sitting. Thinking about things. He and Jess had hung out at the music store for a little while, and then parted ways.

"Fancy finding you here."

Ryan looked up to see his mom standing beside him. "Mom. What are you doing here?"

"I got your note." She held it up. "Can I sit?"

Ryan nodded.

Lorelai sat beside her son. She was trying to figure out the right words to say.

"I'm sorry for the way I acted earlier." Ryan spoke first.

"So I read." She pointed at the note again. "Thanks for leaving one, by the way."

Ryan smiled up at his mom.

"I'm glad to see that you left your room. I didn't want you to sit up there all day."

"Well Jess convinced me that I was being stupid."

"Smart kid." Lorelai remarked.

"I never thought I'd hear you say that."

"Never thought I would say it." Lorelai thought, but it was true. Jess was a good kid. He was just misunderstood.

Again, they sat quietly for a moment. Both taking in the scenery.

"I'm not sorry about the check." Ryan added. He wanted to make sure that she knew that. "We probably won't ever agree on what I did, but I did it because I knew they would help. I probably should have talked to you first, but I knew that you would say no."

"You are right. I would have."

Ryan knew it.

Lorelai sighed. "But I realized how hard it must have been for you to ask your grandparents for help."

Ryan nodded and looked at his mom.

"It was probably as hard as it was for me to accept their check." She told him with a smile.

Ryan thought about what she said. "Wait." He smiled. "Did you deposit the check?"

Lorelai nodded. "I talked to your grandparents today."

Ryan smiled widely at his mom. He wasn't surprised. He fully expected that she would, but he was surprised that she deposited the check.

"They were expecting me." Lorelai smiled at her only son.

"How did it go?"

Lorelai sighed and shook her head. "I'm still trying to figure that out."

"They really didn't mind, mom. They were glad to help."

"Yes I know you see it that way, but I don't."

"Is this where we fight again?" Ryan asked. He was hoping they didn't fight again. He felt like he had won, so there was no need to fight anymore.

Lorelai shook her head. "This is where I talk and you listen, and then we agree to get over it and never let it happen again."

Ryan didn't say anything. He decided to let his mom talk.

"I was really mad at you for going to your grandparents behind my back. I wanted to handle this on my own, and maybe that wasn't the best idea, and I know that you didn't agree with it, but it should have been my decision to make."

Ryan nodded. She was probably right. "I wanted to help. I knew they would help."

"I understand that, but I didn't want their help."

"But." Ryan went to interject, but Lorelai held up her hand.

"Ryan, have you or your sisters ever been without food or clothes or books or book covers for that matter or anything else you have ever needed?" Lorelai asked him.

"No."

"No, and see, the reason for that is me. I have a pretty good track record for keeping you guys alive." Lorelai tried to explain.

"Yeah I know, you do, but…"

"But nothing. You have to let me handle things mainly because your birth certificate has my name on it. That little fact makes me in charge of your well being." She smiled. "You have to respect that okay, and you have to trust that I will take care of you and your sisters no matter what. There is no evidence to say that I won't. Understand?" She gave him a stern look with a slight smile.

Ryan nod. "Yeah, I understand. I'm sorry that I went behind your back."

"Good." She ruffled his hair. "I know that you meant well, and I love that you want to protect us, but you can't have my job. Alright. I kind of like it, and I don't want you to be a parent for a very long time. Okay."

He nodded again.

"Seriously. I mean it. I am way too young to be a grandma."

"Got it." Ryan smiled

"I want you to enjoy being a kid. Focus on that."

He kept nodding. "I got it. I really do."

"Great." She held out her hand. "Fight over?"

He shook her hand and then gave her a hug. "Fight over."

"Thank goodness." She held him tight and finally released him. "So you really like sitting out here on this bridge?" She made a face.

"Yep. It is usually pretty quiet."

Lorelai looked out at the water. "Seems kind of boring if you ask me."

"I didn't."

She poked him. "Ha. Ha. Such a joker." She laughed. "We should get a TV or something to put out here. Every good spot needs a TV."

"All I need is a book."

"You are such a little weirdo."

"Yep. I know." He stood up. "You ready. I need a ride."

"You better hold out your thumb." Now she was the one joking.

Ryan gave her a look.

"Kidding. A little."

The mother and son duo began walking to her car.

"So I've got some news." Lorelai didn't know how he was going to take it.

"What else could there be?"

"When school starts in the fall, we are going to have Friday night dinners with your grandparents." She stopped walking to see his reaction.

"How did that happen?" Ryan couldn't believe it. "You were right. They wanted something out of it. I should have known."

Lorelai shook her head. "Actually it was my suggestion."

"Seriously?"

"Yes, and I am going to pay them back every cent."

"Why did you have to pick Friday?"

"That was actually your grandmother. She has to put her Emily touch on every situation."

"Every Friday night." Ryan repeated.

"We will get through it together." Lorelai reminded him.

"Okay." Ryan trusted her. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

* * *

Later that afternoon, Lorelai and Ryan walked into their house. Rory and Ruby were sitting on the couch with Luke watching their every move.

"Hey." Lorelai smiled at his sight. "What are you doing here?" She kissed Luke's cheek.

Ryan could tell that something was wrong.

"What's wrong?" Lorelai looked at Luke and then back at the girls. She was actually supposed to pick Ruby up later. She was a little confused.

Rory looked at Luke. She was hoping he would explain things. After she and Lane had returned to the Diner, Luke had immediately realized something was wrong.

" _What are you two doing back?" Luke asked with his coffee pot in hand._

" _Oh nothing." Rory sat down at an empty table._

" _Yeah nothing." Lane followed suit._

 _Luke could tell that Lane had something to say. "Lane, are you sure?"_

" _She's sure." Rory answered for her friend._

" _Rory, I'm talking to Lane." Luke looked at Rory and then at Lane. "What's going on?"_

" _I'm sorry Rory. Someone is following us." Lane blurted out. "Specifically someone is following Rory."_

" _Lane." Rory dropped her head. So much for a secret._

 _Luke was shocked._

Lane had explained the car that they had seen and even told him that Rory had noticed it following her before.

Luke ran outside to catch and kill the idiot, but the car was nowhere to be found. He walked Lane home, picked up Ruby, and told Jess that he wasn't allowed to leave the Diner until Luke got back from Lorelai's.

"Someone is following your family." Luke whispered so that Ruby could not hear him. Although, the young girl knew that something was wrong.

Lorelai didn't know what to say or do. She reached out for Luke's hand, and he pulled her close. He would protect her and the kids no matter what, and she knew that.

* * *

 **Most of you probably noticed that some of what Lorelai said was from episode 12 of season 2, Secrets and Loans. I obviously changed it a little, but I wanted to give credit where credit is due. That was one of my favorite episodes, and I'm not even sure why. It might be because it reminded me of how my mom and I fought. We had similar conversations of how I thought she was being stubborn and how it was okay because she was the mom and she would take care of me. Anyways, that doesn't matter. I just thought I would share a little.**

 **I hope you all are enjoying the story. I definitely enjoy writing it.**

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	67. Stressed

**I know that it has been a while since I last posted, but there is a reason for that. I wanted to get the next few chapters written because they all tie together. So hopefully updates should be pretty frequent. There isn't too much of this story left. I hope you all enjoy the ride.**

 **Thanks again for all the support. I appreciate all of you.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 67: Stressed**

After her immediate panic attack, Lorelai thought about her father and the conversation they had when she told him about her fears of Christopher. She had a feeling that he was behind the mysterious car that was following her daughter.

She had been right. Her dad had admitted that he hired someone to follow them all around. The person following Rory hadn't done a very good job at being discrete. Richard was planning on firing him. Lorelai made her dad promise to fire all of them. Richard had reluctantly agreed. He tried to explain to his daughter that he was just trying to protect his loved ones.

Lorelai understood that, but she was upset with her father for making her children worry. She and Luke tried to calm their nerves and play it off like it was nothing at all. Fortunately, Ruby seemed preoccupied with her birthday party. Rory and Ryan asked questions, but in the end they took their mom and Luke's word for it.

Luke was relieved that it had been someone Lorelai's father had hired. After the anger had worn off, Lorelai felt the same way. She couldn't imagine what she would do if it had been something else. She was convinced now more than ever that they had to figure out what Christopher was up to. She tried to call him several times. She even left him several messages, but it had been radio silence on his end.

Rory let her mom know that Ruby had sent him an invitation to her birthday party. Lorelai knew that she didn't have to worry about him showing up. She knew she would have to come up with something to tell Ruby, so that she wouldn't have her heart broken yet again.

A few days had passed since the incident, and they were all focused on the town's start of summer festival and Ruby's party, which was the day after the town event. Ruby had become a little boss trying to make sure everything went exactly according to her plan. She had put both of her siblings to work in helping her make it the very best.

Lorelai was beyond stressed out. Everything that had happened over the last couple weeks had been way too much for her to handle. She felt like everything was falling apart, but she didn't want the kids or Luke or anyone to know that that she was struggling.

Although, at the Inn, she had a small breakdown when a guest insulted Sookie's food and demanded to be comped for his meal. Lorelai was usually understanding, but because of her rising stress level she yelled at the guest and stormed off.

She was currently hiding out in Mia's office. She felt horrible about the way she had handled things. She had been very unprofessional.

"Lorelai." Mia said as she entered the office. "There you are."

"Oh Mia." She stood up. "I'm sorry I was just. Um."

"Hiding out." Mia finished the sentence for her.

Lorelai nodded. "Michel told you about Mr. Winters."

"He didn't have to tell me. I heard the end of the conversation." Mia informed her as she pointed to the couch, and Lorelai sat back down. Mia joined her.

"He got really loud."

"I know. Mr. Winters is such a jerk."

Lorelai nodded in agreement. "I shouldn't have gotten loud back. I know the rule. The guest is always right."

Mia shook her head. "That rule applies to most guests, but Mr. Winters is one of the worst guests we have ever had. He behaves like this every single time he comes."

"Well we may never have to worry about that again. He said he and his family would never come back again."

"Lorelai he does that every time he comes. He wants us to give some kind of comp." Mia informed Lorelai.

"I didn't offer him anything because he is a class A jerk." Lorelai was over it.

"Good for you. Maybe we will get lucky and he won't come back. I don't think we need guests like him anyways." The inn definitely wouldn't lose anything if the man didn't come back to Stars Hollow.

"I am sorry for going off on him." She really did feel bad about it. "I'm feeling a little stressed out."

"That's understandable." Mia patted her leg. "You have a lot going on right now."

"Right." Lorelai agreed. "But I should not let that effect my work. That isn't very professional."

"Yes. But lucky for you I am the boss, and I understand."

"I don't know if I can do this without you, Mia. I'm not ready." Lorelai admitted. "You can't leave at the end of the summer. I need you. This place needs you."

"Oh darling." Mia gave her a sympathetic smile. "I am leaving the Inn in very capable hands. I knew from the moment that I met you that you could handle it. You are a very impressive young woman, Lorelai Gilmore."

Lorelai smiled. Mia was always trying her best to make her feel better about herself. "Keep going. I really need my ego boosted."

"We would be here all day if I did that."

Lorelai nodded. "I love you, Mia." She gave the older woman a big hug.

"I love you too, my sweet Lorelai."

"What a lovely moment." Michel said as he walked into the room, interrupting the two women.

"What is it Michel?" Mia asked.

"A man claiming to be your father is here to see you." He pointed at Lorelai.

Lorelai stood up. "My dad is here."

"Lorelai." Richard walked into the room.

"You are right here." She was surprised.

Mia was now standing.

"I told him to wait in the lobby, but he insisted on following me. Gilmores never listen."

"We will give you a minute." Mia gave her a gentle squeeze on the shoulder. She ushered Michel out of the office.

"Dad." Lorelai looked at him and motioned for him to come further into the office. "What are you doing here? I didn't know you were coming. You could have called."

Richard shook his head. "I need to talk to you about something."

"Something that you couldn't do over the phone." Lorelai was becoming more nervous.

"We needed to do this in person." He said plainly, Lorelai was unable to read him.

"Oh."

"You should sit. We should sit." He pointed to the couch.

Both Gilmores sat down.

"Oh okay." She sighed and then stood up. "I think that I should stand, and I think you should tell me what's going on."

Richard nodded. "My investigator found some information on Christopher."

"I'm guessing by the look on your face that he isn't volunteering in an orphanage or curing cancer." She had to joke about it, if she didn't she would go crazy.

Richard took a breath. He really didn't know how to tell her.

"Dad. Come on. Spit it out."

"It seems that Christopher was fired from his job."

"Okay." That didn't seem like the worst thing in the world. "I'm guessing there is more to the story. Why did he get fire?"

"It seems that Christopher embezzled a lot of money from the company, and before he could be arrested, he took off. No one has been able to find him. He has gone off the grid."

"Oh Christopher." Lorelai sat down, shook her head, and sighed. She couldn't believe that he would do something so stupid.

"He also—"

"There's more." She should have known that it was bad.

"My investigator also found out that Christopher is in over his head in gambling debt. There are a lot of people after him. We aren't the only ones looking for him."

"Other people?" She questioned.

"It seems he borrowed money from the wrong people and didn't pay them back properly."

"He messed with a loan shark." Lorelai kept shaking her head. "God. How stupid can he be? I can't believe he would do this. I knew that he had a gambling problem, but I never thought it would get this bad."

"I'm worried about you and the children. I think you should let me hire the security guards back."

"No." Lorelai shook her head. "It freaked the kids out last time. I don't want to do that again. I don't want to worry them."

"They should be worried. This is serious, Lorelai. He has gotten involved with some pretty bad people." Richard tried to explain to his daughter. "We don't know what they could be capable of doing."

"I don't want the kids to be followed." Lorelai stood her ground. "Dad, I just want this all to go away."

"I understand that, but this is serious."

"I know it is serious." She was very upset. "I knew it was serious the first time I realized he had a gambling problem. I know how serious this is, but I want to keep this from my kids. I want to protect them from all of this."

"Lorelai."

"Dad, thank you for finding this out for me." Lorelai stood up. "I hope that the police find him. I'll have to figure out what to tell the kids." She had no idea what she was going to tell them. Their father was probably going to prison or worse. How do you explain that? Now she was even more stressed out.

"Lorelai." Richard didn't know what to say to his daughter. Anything he could say wasn't going to help her. They were all at a loss.

Lorelai was trying her best to hold back her tears. She didn't want to cry in front of her father once again.

Richard stood up. "I should probably get back to Hartford. I promise to call you if I hear anything else."

"Thanks, dad."

"Remember that you can call me if you need anything. I can get the security back if you change your mind."

Lorelai nodded. She knew that. But she wasn't going to change her mind. "We will see you tomorrow, right? Ruby is looking forward to it."

"We wouldn't miss it for the world." Richard smiled. "Your mother went crazy with the presents."

"You already bought her presents."

"You know your mother."

"Yes I do."

"We will see you tomorrow."

Lorelai put on a fake smile. She would have to make sure to watch the kids more closely until it all went away. Then again, maybe it would never go away.

Now more than ever she wondered if Christopher would show up for Ruby's party.

* * *

Ryan, Rory, Jess, and Lane helped Ruby set up for her party. She had been really bossy. She, Rory, and Lane went home to get ready for the summer festival. They were all planning on going together with Luke and Lorelai.

Jess was going to meet Scarlett before the festival. Ryan stayed behind to read by the Inn's pool. He liked the peace and quiet. He had to admit that he had fun hanging out with his sisters and friends. He was also glad that he and his mom had made up. He didn't like fighting with her.

"Hey kid." Lorelai found her only son sitting by the pool. "Are you ready to go?"

"Do we have to go?" He really wasn't ready.

"I thought we could stop by the diner, get a quick bite, and then go home to get your sisters."

"I thought we were eating at the festival."

"It's our pregame meal." Lorelai smiled. "You never know if the festival food will be that good. We don't want to be disappointed."

"You do know that Luke's is right next to the square." Ryan laughed.

"That's why we will eat there after too." Lorelai looked around. "So um…You guys were out here most of the day?"

Ryan nodded. "Yep. Taking orders from Ruby." He smirked.

"That's the best way to spend a day." Lorelai was glad that the kids hadn't seen their grandfather. She figured Ryan would have mentioned it if they had.

"You bet." He held up his book. "Can I stay here for a little while longer?" He really wasn't ready to leave.

"Ryan."

"Please. I can meet you guys at the festival."

"I think Mia is going to the festival. You can come with her, okay."

"Thanks, mom."

She kissed his forehead. "We will see you at the festival. Do not leave without Mia."

"I won't. I promise. Bring me a brownie from Luke's."

"What about all the festival food?" She mocked.

"Nothing beats a brownie from Luke's."

"It's even better when he drops too much coco powder in. The first time he did it I think it was an accident, but now I think he does it on purpose."

"Because he loves you." Ryan joked.

"I'll save you two." Lorelai didn't say anything about the 'loves you' statement. Luke had never told her that. He had never said the words, but the way he acted made her feel like he did in fact love her. She thought about her feelings for Luke, but then her mind went to Christopher and all the trouble he was causing. She needed all of this to be over so that she could focus on her relationship with Luke and their future together.

"Mom." Ryan said her name when he realized she was somewhere else. "Earth to mom."

"Oh. I was just thinking. I'll see you in a little while."

"Okay. See ya." Ryan went back to his book after his mom walked away.

* * *

"Rory." Ruby ran down the stairs wearing her bright pink bathing suit with one of her play crowns on top of her head.

"What is it Ruby?" Rory walked out of her room and smiled at her little sister. "Why do you have your bathing suit on already?"

"I wanted to try it on." Ruby twirled around. "How do I look?"

"You look like a pretty little princess."

"That's what I was going for." She couldn't stop twirling and prancing. "Do you think it is going to be the best party ever?"

Rory nodded quickly. "We are going to have the best time. No one is going to want to leave the Inn."

"Maybe I should have requested a sleepover. That would be fun."

"Maybe next year." Rory gave her little sister a hug. "You should go get changed."

"Can I wear this to the festival?"

Rory shook her head. "Nope. But you can wear one of your princess dresses."

"Yay. You are the best sister in the whole world."

"I'm your only sister."

"Then good thing that I think you're the best." Ruby laughed as she ran back upstairs to change.

Rory turned back towards her bedroom, when she noticed that the phone was blinking. She pushed the button.

" _Hey guys."_

Rory was shocked when she heard her dad's voice.

" _It's me, your dad. You probably knew that. Ruby, sweetheart, I wanted to tell you that I'm going to try my best to come to your party. I know with your mom planning it that it will be a blast. I love you sweetheart. I love all of you so much. I hope that you know that."_

The phone beeped and her father's voice was gone.

Rory looked up the stairs and realized that Ruby never heard the message. She didn't want to get her hopes up. Rory pushed the button.

" _Message deleted." The machine sounded._

Rory sighed. It was better to pretend that it never happened. That he never called. It wasn't like anyone expected him to call in the first place.

* * *

Back at the Inn, Ryan had finished reading and was heading into find Mia, when he felt something to touch his arm. Before he could say anything, he was being pulled behind the bushes.

"Hey. What's going…." He paused when he saw his dad standing in front of him. "Dad."

"Hey kid." Christopher tried to smile, but Ryan could tell he was no longer the man that he remembered. "I need your help."

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought! More to come soon!**


	68. Summer Festival

**I hope you all enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 68: Summer Festival**

The streets and square of Stars Hollow had been taken over by booths, vendors, foods, games, and a stage for some tuba playing band that Taylor hired.

Lorelai and her girls were walking through the square. Ruby was overwhelmed with all the things that she could do. "Mommy, can we get cotton candy?"

"Sure."

"Oh there are my favorite girls." Ms. Patty said as she handed Ruby a balloon. "Here sweetie. I got this with you in mind. I thought you'd like that it was shaped like a flower."

"It's the best." Ruby looked up at Ms. Patty and pointed to the stage. "I wish we were dancing today."

"Oh honey you will have plenty of performances. You are my little shining star." Ms. Patty touched the top of Ruby's button nose.

"She is pretty bright." Lorelai added.

"We need glasses even to look at her." Rory teased.

Ruby smiled at all of them. "That's too funny." She giggled.

"Well you girls have fun. I'm on the hunt for a man." Ms. Patty waved as she walked off.

Lorelai smiled. She couldn't believe she lived in a town with so many colorful characters.

"Mommy, can I go play on the carousel?" Ruby begged.

"Sure hon. We will all go."

"Mommy, I'm a big girl. I can go by myself."

"No. You can't." Lorelai said sternly. Both girls were surprised by her response. "I'm sorry. I really want to go."

"I'll take her." Rory interjected. "Someone has to hold the balloon."

"That's right." Lorelai took the balloon from Ruby. "I'll be right over here."

"Okay, mommy."

Rory followed her sister to the carousel. Lorelai knew that she needed to control her stress level. She couldn't stop thinking about Christopher, the gambling, and the stealing. She couldn't wrap her mind around it. She didn't need to snap at anyone else.

"Hey you." Sookie said as she, Jackson, and Davey approached Lorelai.

"Hey guys." Lorelai responded. "Hey Mr. Davey." She smiled at the young boy.

"Where's Ruby?"

"Davey say hello first."

"That's okay Davey. I know Ruby is your girlfriend." Lorelai laughed.

Davey shook his head. "She is just my bestest friend." He clarified for the adults.

"Right. That makes more sense." Lorelai smiled. "Ruby is at the carousel."

"Mommy, can we go?" Davey tugged at his mom's shirt.

"I'll take him." Jackson said as he took Davey's hand and led him to the carousel.

"Are you okay?" Sookie asked once they were alone.

"I should be asking you that question. You are the one that is pregnant."

"Lorelai I am just fine, but I am worried about you. You don't seem like yourself." Sookie could tell. They had only known each other about a year, but Sookie knew Lorelai better than anyone ever had. "I saw your dad leave the Inn earlier."

"Oh yeah. It was nothing. He wanted to talk about Ruby's party." Lorelai lied. She didn't want to worry Sookie.

"Really?" Sookie wasn't buying it. "He couldn't have called you on the phone."

Lorelai shrugged. "You never know with my parents."

"Oh right. I forget they are a little weird."

"They are extremely weird." Lorelai added.

"Mommy." Ruby yelled at her mother from the carousel. "We are going to go again. This time with Davey." She waved.

"Okay." Lorelai yelled. "Have fun sweets." She made sure that Rory was getting back on with her sister. She didn't want either girl to be a part, and she wanted to keep a close eye on both of them.

"I'm going to go get some cotton candy." Sookie told her. "The baby is craving something sweet and bad for us."

"Okay."

"Do you want some?"

"I'm good. Thanks, Sook." Lorelai focused her attention on the carousel.

"Hey Lorelai."

Lorelai looked over to see Rachel beside her with an empty baby stroller. "Hi. Rachel. Hi."

"How are you?"

"I'm good." She nodded. "How are you? I see someone took your baby."

"Oh yes. He is playing with Babette. The women in this town can't keep their hands off my little guy." Rachel pulled out her camera. "I love to get pictures at these festivals. The townspeople are all characters."

"I've learned that over this past year."

"They were part of the reason I wanted to leave, and ironically enough they were what brought me back. I realized quickly it is way too hard to raise a kid alone. But you know all about that."

"Yeah." Lorelai felt uncomfortable. She was trying to figure out why Rachel was talking to her. She seemed way too eager to get to know her. Lorelai didn't have the same eagerness. She didn't care to know the woman that used to have Luke's heart. "The town is pretty great." She added because she felt like she needed to say something.

"Yeah. I didn't think so when I was an unruly teenager."

"I think I would have loved it here when I was an unruly teenager." Lorelai thought. "Anything would have been better than living with my parents in their scary mansion. Maybe even the deepest part of hell."

"Ha ha." Rachel giggled. "You are funny."

"So I've been told."

"Honestly, I think the only reason I stayed here as long as I did was because of Luke." Rachel admitted, knowing that she was probably oversharing.

"Really."

Rachel nodded. "I was so in love with him back then, but it wasn't enough for me to stay. I wanted to see the world and after I saw the world it led me back here."

"To Luke." Lorelai knew she sounded like a major bitch, but at the moment she wasn't in the mood to care.

"No." Rachel said quickly. "Of course not." She wanted her to know that. "I know everyone thinks that, but it isn't the truth. I loved Luke. A part of me will always love Luke. But I came here for my son. It is what is best for him. Same thing you did for your family."

Lorelai gave her a look of confusion. How did she know that?

"Luke told me all about it."

"Right." Lorelai found herself getting mad, but not at Rachel. She was becoming mad at Luke. She had a feeling it had to do with all the stress she felt towards the Christopher situation.

"He is crazy about you." Rachel thought it was important for Lorelai to know that. She didn't want Lorelai to think that she was after Luke. Because that was the farthest thing from the truth. "You know, I've never seen Luke so happy. He really love you."

Lorelai shook her head. "No. I don't know about that."

"I do. He told me."

Lorelai was surprised by this.

"And if he hadn't told me, I would have known. He is so good with your little girl, and I never thought I would see the day when Luke Danes actually wanted kids."

Lorelai was even more surprised. How did Rachel know all of that?

"He told you all of this?" She questioned.

"Oh yeah." Rachel waved it off. "He wants it all with you. I'm really happy that he found you. He deserves all the happiness in the world."

Lorelai was mad that Luke hadn't told her how he felt. Instead, he had confided in his ex-girlfriend. "I should go." This was becoming too much for her.

"Lorelai. I hope that we can be friends." Rachel smiled. She had a feeling that Lorelai didn't want the same thing.

"Sure." Lorelai's attention turned to her daughters, who were now at the petting zoo. She needed to find Ryan and then she wanted to talk to Luke. "See you around Rachel."

Rachel waved. She had a feeling the conversation hadn't gone as well as she had hoped.

"Hey." Sookie found Lorelai. "I saw you talking to Rachel. How did that go?"

"Uh yeah. It went." She wasn't very focused on Sookie. She couldn't stop thinking about everything. "Listen, will you watch Rory and Ruby?" Lorelai knew it sounded like she was talking about the girl's like they were babies.

"Sure." Sookie touched her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Lorelai shrugged. "I'm fine. Thanks, Sook." Lorelai walked away as if she were on some kind of mission.

"Lorelai." Mia said as Lorelai bumped past her.

"Mia. Hi." Lorelai was knocked out of her trance. "Thank goodness you are here. Where's Ryan?" Lorelai asked as she looked around.

"I thought he might be here."

"What?"

"I didn't see him at the Inn. I figured he came here without me." Mia was beginning to think that she had done something wrong.

"No. He was supposed to come with you. He isn't here."

"When I went to the pool, he was gone."

Lorelai shook her head. This couldn't be happening. "He knew he was supposed to wait on you."

"Lorelai, honey, I am sure that he is fine. You let him go off on his own all the time." Mia was trying to figure out why she was so upset.

"I know, but this thing with Christopher is bad." Lorelai informed her. "It's really bad, Mia."

"Oh no. Lorelai." Mia wrapped her in her arms.

"I'm sorry I'm so upset." Lorelai had tears in her eyes. "I just want to keep the kids close to me until all of this is figured out."

"I'm so sorry."

"Oh no. Mia." They pulled apart. "It isn't your fault. He is probably fine. I'm worrying over nothing. I just. I just don't know what I would do if something happened to him or any of them. They are my babies."

"Maybe Luke has seen him." Mia suggested.

"Maybe so." Lorelai hoped so.

"Where are the girls? I'll stay with him. You go find Ryan."

"They are by the petting zoo." Lorelai pointed. "Thank you, Mia." She walks away to find her kid.

* * *

Ryan had taken his father to the old potting shed behind the Inn. Christopher had begged his son to find them a safe place to talk. Ryan knew the potting shed was safe. No one ever used it. Mia had a bed and a small bathroom put in the shed when one of her friend's daughter needed a place to stay years ago. That's what she had told the Gilmores. She was the last person that ever used it. Mia even talked about knocking it down but had decided against it.

Now, Ryan was standing in the shed staring at his father. He looked a lot different. His hair was turning gray, and he had a lot more of it, especially on his face. He looked like he was on a run, and Ryan had a feeling that he was.

"Thanks, son." Christopher set a small bag down on the bed. "I appreciate this."

"Don't call me that." Ryan snapped at him. "You of all people are never allowed to call me that."

"Ryan. Please. Let me explain."

"What is there to explain, dad? Give me one good reason why I shouldn't call mom and let her know that you've slinked back in town. Are you out of money? If so, too bad. We don't have any to give you. You already took everything we had." Ryan yelled.

"Ryan." Christopher dropped his head. "I am so sorry. I could never apologize enough."

"Damn right."

"Hey." Christopher said sternly. "I don't care how much you hate me. I am still your father. Do not talk like that."

Ryan sighed. He had some nerve. "Why are you here? What do you want from us?"

Christopher didn't even know where to begin. "I just wanted to see you and your sisters. I got Ruby's invitation. I didn't want to miss her fake birthday party."

"You have never minded before. I remember mom trying her best to make up some lame excuse for you. I always blamed her. Now I see how wrong I really was."

"I've screwed up a lot Ryan. I know that. I wish that I could take it back, especially being a lousy father. Out of everything, that is my biggest mistake. My biggest regret. And I have plenty of those."

Ryan nodded. "Yeah. You sure do."

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"You stole from us. We had to ask grandma and grandpa for the money. Can you imagine how mom felt?" Ryan informed him.

Christopher knew exactly how Lorelai felt. "I never wanted that to happen. I was going to give that money back."

"But you blew it. Of course."

"Ryan. I'm sorry."

"You keep saying that, but you still haven't told me why you took it." Ryan threw back at him. He wanted answers.

Christopher just stared at his son, trying to figure out what to say. He wasn't even sure why he had come to Stars Hollow. It was a mistake in the long line of mistakes he had made over the years.

"Come on. Tell me why you did it?"

"Ryan, there are a lot of things that I have done. I know you said you don't want to hear but I'm truly sorry. I'll never be able to tell you that enough."

"You've already said that, and I don't care." Ryan rolled his eyes.

"I'm in a lot of trouble." Christopher admitted. He didn't nowhere to start. He had no intentions of telling his fifteen year old son everything. "I've been running from it, and I am pretty sure I'm about to run out of time."

"Time?" Ryan looked at his father with a confused look. "Are you dying?"

"No." Christopher quickly corrected. "I'm not dying."

"Then what's going on?"

"I am not proud of what I did. I feel ashamed."

"What was it?" Ryan was getting frustrated with his dad. He just needed to tell him what was wrong already.

"I stole from my company."

"Why would you do that?" Ryan thought it sounded weird. He didn't understand why his dad would do it.

"I um I…I started gambling again. I lost a lot of money."

"That's why you stole from us."

"I got in over my head. I have a lot of people who are angry with me." Christopher didn't want to worry him about the creditors. Honestly, he didn't want to think about it.

"You are a smart person. Why would you do this?" Ryan was angry.

"Ryan."

"You are a thief." He summarized. "The worst part is that you stole from us. We are your kids. It is your job to protect us, and take care of us. You've never been able to do that." Ryan shook his head and sighed. "I don't even know why you came here."

"I needed to see you kids."

"That's bullshit." Ryan snapped.

"Come on, Ryan." Christopher felt so ashamed. He really wished that he could take it all back.

"No you come on." Ryan sat on the edge of the bed. "Are you going to go to jail?"

Christopher thought about it, bit his bottom lip, and closed his eyes. He then looked up at his son. "I think I might."

"For how long?"

Christopher shook his head. "I don't know. It will probably be better if I turn myself in."

"Then turn yourself in. You've kind of lost your shot with me and Rory, but you might still have hope with Ruby."

Christopher nodded. "I'm going to do it tomorrow, but I wanted to see all of you first. I want to explain things to your mom."

"She's not going to be on your side." Ryan warned him. "She's going to hate you for this."

"I know that."

"I don't even know how we are going to explain this to Ruby."

"You don't have to explain this to anyone."

"It's not like you will." Ryan threw it back at him. "You always make messes and leave it for someone else to clean up."

"I know that I have screwed up. The worst part for me is standing here in front of you and seeing how disappointed you are in me. I hate it. I hate what I have done with my life. You deserve better. You all deserve better than me. I can't go back and fix it, but I am going to do whatever I can to make things right from here on out."

"I don't know how you expect to do that." Ryan stood up. "You are going to go to jail."

Christopher didn't know what else to say.

"When are you going to tell mom?"

"Tomorrow after Ruby's party."

"Okay."

"I need your help."

"I shouldn't help you." Ryan knew he could be in a lot of trouble for helping his dad, especially if his dad was in trouble with the law. "You don't deserve it."

"I know."

"Mom will kill us both."

"I know."

"But you can stay here." Ryan didn't see what it would hurt. "I won't say anything."

"Thank you, son."

"Don't thank me and don't call me son." Ryan stood firm with him. "You lost that privilege a long time ago."

"Right." Christopher sighed. "Sorry. Ryan."

"I've got to go." Ryan said as he looked at his watch. He knew his mom was likely aware that he wasn't where he was meant to be. "You should be safe here. I'll be back in the morning."

"Alright."

"Don't run. Please. I've never asked you for anything, but I'm asking you for this. Don't run away anymore."

"I'll be here in the morning. I want to see your sisters."

Ryan nodded. He wasn't sure they would feel the same way, but he didn't want his dad to run off. He wanted to him to do what he said he was going to do. "Yeah. Sure. See ya." Ryan walked out of the tiny potting shed.

Christopher watched his son leave and sat on the edge of the bed. He really couldn't believe the mess he had made with his life.

* * *

At the Diner, Lorelai walked in, and Luke immediately spotted her. "Hey I was about to come find you and the kids." Things were finally beginning to slow down for him.

"Is Ryan here?" Lorelai asked, as if she hadn't even heard what Luke had said.

"No. I didn't know that he was supposed to be here." Luke touched her shoulder and was surprised that Lorelai pulled away from here.

She shook her head. "No. He was supposed to be with Mia. I was hoping that he was here. I really wanted him to be here."

"I'm sure he is fine." Luke didn't see the problem.

"I need to know for sure that he is fine."

"Lorelai. What's wrong?" He asked sincerely.

"My son is missing." She said dramatically. "He was supposed to be at the festival. We talked about it. He knew that he was going to come here with Mia." She sighed. "And for some reason everyone in my life doesn't want to communicate with me."

"Lorelai. Come here." He pulled her outside of the Diner. "What is going on with you?"

"Luke. I just can't deal with this right now." She threw her hands up in the air. She was in full blown panic mode, and it was scaring Luke. He had never really seen her like this.

"What are you talking about?"

"Everything is messed up. I had to spend ten minutes talking to your ex." She point to the festival as if Rachel was standing right in front of them.

"Rachel. You were talking to Rachel." Luke thought that was odd.

Lorelai nodded. "Yes because she wants to be best friends." She said with air quotes. "Isn't that great? Sounds like a good plan to me. At least if we are friends, I'll get to find out things about you. You know the things you are keeping from me."

Luke just stared at her with a lost look.

"She told me that you wanted to have kids and that you love me."

"Lorelai." Luke grimaced. That's not how he wanted her to find out.

"Why can you talk to Rachel and not me? Kids and love that's huge. Definitely something you should share with me first, not your ex."

"Lorelai. Why are you so upset?" He had a feeling this had to do with something else. This wasn't about him and Rachel. At least it shouldn't be. There was absolutely nothing going on between him and Rachel, and he knew that Lorelai knew that too.

"I can't talk about this right now. I've got to find Ryan." She walked away from him before he could say anything else.

"Lorelai." Luke was taken aback. He didn't understand what was going on with her. She was clearly not herself.

* * *

After her horrible non-talk with Luke, Lorelai grabbed the girls and headed to the Inn. She searched for Ryan, but one of the workers told her he had already left. Lorelai headed home to find her son.

"I can't believe you made us leave." Ruby complained as they walked to the front porch.

"I'm sorry, Ruby."

"It's unfair. We were having so much fun."

"I know. I'm the worst."

"Come on Ruby." Rory could sense something was wrong with their mom. She seemed on edge. "Let's get ready for bed. You have a big day tomorrow." She took her hand and led her into the house.

"Ryan." Lorelai called out when she walked into the house.

A few seconds later, Ryan walked down the stairs. "Hey mom."

"Don't hey mom me." Lorelai yelled at him, taking him by surprise. He could tell that she as mad.

"What's wrong?"

"You are really asking me that right now. Did you forget the conversation we had by the pool? You were supposed to come to the festival with Mia."

"I know. I changed my mind. I didn't think you would care."

"Of course I cared. You know that I need to know where you are at all times. We've had this conversation so many times before. I feel like a damn broken record."

Ryan shrugged. "I'm sorry mom." He had no idea that she would be this mad.

"That's not good enough this time. I was worried out of my mind about you." She was relieved that he was home.

"I'm really sorry. I should have called or something."

"You should have gone to the festival with Mia." She corrected him. "I want to be able to trust you Ryan, but it is obvious that I can't." She paused. "So you are grounded."

"What?" Ryan was shocked. "Are you serious?"

She didn't seem like herself at all.

"Yes." Lorelai snapped. "This is very serious. You don't seem to get that. I have to resort to something drastic. You need to understand the rules. The two of us talking about it obviously isn't working anymore."

"This means I'm not allowed to go to Ruby's party." He knew it didn't.

"Oh no. You're going. This means you aren't allowed to leave my sight." She informed him with a look of fear in her eyes.

Ryan knew in that moment that his mom knew about his dad. By the look in her eyes, it must be worse than his dad had told him. He wanted to tell his mom that he knew, but he couldn't. Ryan didn't know why he was protecting his dad. He hated him for everything that he had done to the family, but in the end Christopher was still his dad. And honestly he didn't want to upset his mom. She had been through enough already.

"So can I go to my room or is that not allowed. I won't be in your sight."

"Don't be smart." Lorelai warned.

"Right." Ryan nodded. "Okay. Sorry." He sighed as he looked at his mom. He couldn't believe how sad that she looked. "I'm sorry. Really. I'm sorry that I worried you."

Lorelai was happy to hear that. "Good. I don't know what I would do if something ever happened to you."

"I know. I was fine." Ryan gave his mom one more look. He should tell her. He really should tell her. But he didn't. "Goodnight, mom."

"Goodnight, sweetie." Lorelai sighed as Ryan headed upstairs to his room. She knew she overreacted, but at least this way she could keep a close eye on him.

She sat down on the couch, put her face in her hands, and cried quietly. She was ready for this nightmare to be over.


	69. Donuts

**Thanks so much for all the reviews! I'm glad you weren't too mad about stressed out Lorelai. I agree that she should tell the kids about Christopher, but then there probably wouldn't be as much drama! I love a little drama!**

 **This is a shorter chapter. I'll try to update sooner rather than later!**

 **I know that I have said it before, but there isn't much more left to this story. I've always planned to end it at a certain place. But since writing this thing, I have come up with some ideas and had request for a sequel. I only want to do a sequel if enough people are interested in my alternate Gilmore world! So I wanted to ask you guys what you thought.**

 **Poll time: Should I do a sequel, and if so should there be a time jump?**

 **A. Yes, do a sequel and continue the story without a huge time jump**

 **B. Yes, do a sequel but jump time so that Ruby is a teenager (Would have heavy flashbacks)**

 **C. End it when it ends**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 69: Donuts**

The next morning Lorelai got herself out of bed. She needed coffee quickly. She had barely slept at all the night before. She kept hearing noises and checking on the children. She was surprised that she hadn't woken them up as many times as she had gotten out of bed.

Before going downstairs, she checked on Ryan. His door was slightly opened. She stuck her head in to see that he was still asleep. She headed downstairs and peaked her head into the girl's room. Ruby was still asleep, but Rory wasn't in her bed. Her heart began to drop.

"Rory." Lorelai walked back into the living room and then outside. "Rory." She didn't see her daughter. She walked back into the house. Where was her daughter? She grabbed the phone. "Rory." She called out again.

Just as she was about to call Lane, the door opened, and Rory entered holding a bag of donuts. "Hey mom." She said cheerfully.

"Hey mom." Lorelai said harshly. "That's all you have to say to me. Hey mom. Where the hell were you?" Her tone was stern and out of character for the usual fun loving, donut eating mom.

That's why Rory was surprised by her mom's reaction. She looked down at the bag of donuts. "I went to get donuts."

"You didn't ask me." Lorelai acted as if it were some kind of crime. It never had been a problem before.

"I didn't know I had too." Rory was completely thrown off by her mom.

"Of course you have too. Do you know how worried I was when I woke up and my daughter wasn't in her bed where she was supposed to be." Lorelai explained. "I was just about to call Lane."

"Mom, are you okay?" Rory asked. She was pretty sure her mom had been possessed by aliens or something worse.

"I was freaking out, Rory." Lorelai ran her fingers through her hair. "You can't leave the house without telling me where you are going."

"Okay. I'm sorry." Rory didn't realize what a big deal it was.

Lorelai realized this was her chance to keep Rory close too. "You know what you can join your brother in being grounded."

Rory's mouth dropped. "Are you serious?" Her mom had to be joking. "Am I being punk'd?"

Lorelai nodded. "You are not being punk'd. This isn't some kind of joke. I'm serious. You two are not leaving my sight for the foreseeable future."

"Mom, you have let me leave the house without asking before." Rory reminded her. "I've never been grounded because of it."

"There is a first time for everything." Lorelai shook her head and looked at the clock. "I should get ready. We have a busy day." She walked upstairs leaving Rory confused.

Moments later Ryan walked downstairs. "What was with all the yelling?" He asked and then noticed the bag of donuts. "Oh yeah. Donuts. Thanks, Ror." He took the bag from her and headed to the kitchen.

"Mom grounded me." Rory told him as she followed him to the kitchen.

"What? Are you serious?" Ryan chuckled.

Rory nodded.

"You are serious. That's ridiculous. What did you do? Forgot to take a library book back."

"Don't joke about that. It has happened."

"Yeah and you freaked out about it." Ryan reminded her. "Did you do that again?"

"No." Rory shook her head and took a donut from the opened bag. "I went to get donuts without her permission."

"Seriously?" Ryan couldn't help but laugh. "Congratulations. At least I won't be lonely."

"What's going on with her?"

They both sat down at the table.

"I don't know." Ryan shrugged.

"You have to know something."

"I don't."

"You are lying. I can tell. You forget that I know you." Rory pointed. "Tell me what is going on or I'm going to call mom back down here, and we can all discuss what you know."

Ryan rolled his eyes. He obviously didn't have a choice. "I'll have to show you when we get to the Inn."

"The secret is at the Inn?" Rory questioned.

Ryan nodded. "Yep." He wasn't sure if Rory was going to be angry with him for helping their dad. They would soon find out.

* * *

Jess walked downstairs to the diner. It wasn't as busy as normal for a Saturday. Jess was rather surprised but grateful since they had a busy day ahead of them. "Uncle Luke." Jess greeted his uncle, who was behind the counter deep in thought.

"You are up early." Luke responded as he was taken out of his thoughts and quickly began cleaning the countertop.

"Ruby's party is today." Jess reminded him, doubtful that Luke could have forgotten. It was the only thing the seven year old had talked about for days maybe even weeks.

"Right. That's right." Luke nodded. "I don't think I'm going to be able to make it. We are way too busy today." He avoided contact with his nephew.

Jess looked around the diner. Were there imaginary people that Jess couldn't see. "What? You are joking right." He had to be joking. "You can't miss Ruby's party."

"She'll understand." Luke said simply as if it wasn't a big deal.

Jess shook his head. He was beginning to get frustrated with his uncle. "She's seven. She won't understand." He explained. He was positive there would be a full blown meltdown if Luke missed the party. "Besides you have to bring the hotdogs. Remember, Sookie wouldn't make them. She is making fancy foods that kids aren't going to eat. You are going to be saving the party."

"You can take the hotdogs." Luke thought it was a valid suggestion.

Jess couldn't believe what he was hearing. There had to be something else going on. He was missing something. "No. You have to take them. You promised." He wasn't going to let it go.

Luke sighed and walked away to clean a table. "I just can't go."

Jess followed his uncle. "You have to go. Did you have a fight with Lorelai?" Jess asked. "Did you guys breakup?"

Luke stopped cleaning the table and sadly looked up at Jess. "I don't know." That was an honest answer. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he was worried. Luke wasn't sure if Lorelai would still want him to go to the party. She may not want to see him again. "I don't want to talk about it."

"You can't miss her party." Jess wasn't having it.

"Jess." Luke sighed. He wanted him to stop talking.

"I don't care if you guys are fighting. You are going to have to put your big boy pants on and get over it." Jess practically yelled at his uncle, damn the consequences. He didn't care.

"Jess. Just drop it." Luke's voice rose a little. Customers were beginning to look at the two.

"No." Jess held firm. "Ruby is in the same boat as I am. She has someone in her life that has always let her down. You are probably the first man besides her grandfather that hasn't let her down. So don't start now. Don't let her down. You can't do that to her. She is counting on you." Jess said what he had to say and then walked away leaving Luke to think about what his nephew had said. Luke knew Jess was right.

* * *

The kids were at the Inn with their mom handling last minute preparations for Ruby's party. Lorelai was keeping an eye on the kids like she had promised. Eventually she had gotten busy with a guest, and they were able to sneak off to the potting shed.

"What are we doing?" Rory kept asking. "We never come out here. I don't even know if we are allowed out here."

"Would you just stop talking?" Ryan rolled his eyes as he opened the door to the potting shed. He was surprised that his dad was still there like he had promised.

Rory was shocked to see her dad standing in front of her.

Christopher was happy to see her. She was growing up so fast. He had missed so much with his kids. "Hey kiddo."

"What's going on?" She looked at Ryan.

"Rory."

"What are you doing here? Why are you hiding in the potting shed? Does mom know you are here?" She had a million questions. This was not the secret Rory was expecting it to be.

"Are we playing twenty questions?" Ryan joked.

"This isn't a joke." Rory glared at her brother. "He stole from us." She reminded her brother.

"Rory let me explain."

"I don't know if you can." Rory sighed. This was unbelievable. "We have to tell mom that you are here." She was positive that their mom didn't know.

"Rory. Please." Christopher just wanted her to let him explain things.

Rory shook her head and started to walk out of the tiny shed.

"Wait." Ryan stopped her.

Rory stopped and turned back to their dad. "What's going on?"

Christopher was relieved that she was going to listen. "I asked your brother to help me out."

"Help you out with what? What is this?"

Now that he had the floor, Christopher wasn't sure what to say.

"Dad is in trouble." Ryan decided to answer her questions. "He is going to jail."

Rory was now more confused than ever. "Jail."

"Prison really." Christopher figured that was the correct term.

"Prison." Rory was shocked. "You are going to prison. Because you stole from us?" She didn't think that was the reason. There had to be something else.

"No." Christopher answered. "I made a lot of mistakes, Rory."

"He stole from other people." Ryan continued to tell the story.

Rory was surprised. She couldn't believe her dad was capable of doing that. "You stole from other people." She repeated. "Why?"

"Rory. I don't think that the why is all that important right now. I am going to turn myself in today."

"Are you on the run? Are you a fugitive? We could be accomplices. I don't want to go to jail. I couldn't handle jail." She began to panic. "Do you know what they do to people like me in jail? I'd never make it. They probably send us to a juvenile detention center, but still I wouldn't make it. I doubt they let you have coffee. What would I do without coffee?"

"Calm down, Ror." Ryan patted her on the back.

"You are not going to jail." Christopher tried to ease her worries. "I have waited to turn myself in so that I can say goodbye."

"I don't even know what to say. Who else did you steal from?"

"The company I worked for." Christopher responded.

"You got fired."

Christopher nodded.

"Obviously he got fired." Ryan answered. "Companies don't tend to keep thieves."

"How long are you going to hide out here?"

"I want to talk to your mom. I am waiting until after the party. I didn't want to ruin Ruby's fun."

"You are going to turn yourself in after you talk to mom?"

Christopher nodded. "I am so sorry for everything that I have done. I never meant to hurt you. I wish I could take it back."

"But you can't." Rory said simply. "You can't take any of it back. No matter how hard you try."

"I know. I know that."

Ryan looked at his watch. "Mom is going to realize that we are missing." He turned to his dad. "Thanks to you I'm grounded."

"Me too."

"And she is watching us like a hawk."

"I'm sorry." Christopher didn't know why he was responsible for them being grounded, but he would take the responsibility if that's what his kids needed.

"Yeah."

"Before you go." Christopher leaned over the bed and pulled out a package wrapped in silver wrapping paper. "Here." He handed it to Rory. "It is for your sister."

Rory took the present. "Are you going to see her before you turn yourself in? She is going to be so confused."

"I don't know." Christopher shook his head. "I was going to talk to your mom about it. I'd love to see her little baby face." It had been far too long.

"If you see her don't call her baby. That baby will punch you." Ryan warned.

Christopher smiled. "Good to know."

"So I guess we will see you." Rory told him as she gave him a hug. "I forgive you." She looked up at him.

"Rory, thank you." Christopher was relieved.

Ryan was surprised. He couldn't believe his sister had so easily forgiven their dad.

"It's not for you. It is for me. I forgive you because it isn't good to hold grudges." Rory wanted to make sure that he understood that.

"I understand."

"Let's go, Rory." Ryan looked at his dad. "See ya."

Christopher watched his kids leave. So many regrets filled his mind. They deserved so much better.

* * *

Outside the shed, Rory stopped her brother. "We have to tell mom."

"We can't. Not until after Ruby's party."

"But Ryan."

"No. Rory. We don't want to run her party. She will never let it go."

"Why are you so willing to keep his secret? You've been more mad at him than I have." Rory asked.

"I don't know." Ryan sighed. "I wish I didn't care, but for some reason I do. No matter all the bad stuff that he has done, he is still my dad."

Rory thought about what her brother was saying. She knew she was making a mistake that she probably would regret. "Fine. But I have a feeling that it is going backfire. Things with dad always do." She reminded her brother.

Maybe it wouldn't this time.

* * *

 **I'm repeating my poll from up above just in case you missed it.**

 **Poll time: Should I do a sequel and should there be a time jump?**

 **A. Yes, do a sequel and continue the story without a huge time jump**

 **B. Yes, do a sequel but jump time so that Ruby is a teenager (Would have heavy flashbacks)**

 **C. End it when it ends**

 **Hope you enjoyed! Let me know what you thought!**


	70. Collide

**I am so thankful for everyone for answering the poll question. I was happy to know so many of you wanted me to continue the story. At first it was pretty much a tie between A and B, but over the last few days, I think that A is the clear winner.**

 **I hope that you all like this chapter. I had this planned out since the beginning, but I debated changing it. I hope you all don't hate me after reading it.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 70: Collide**

Lorelai was standing outside by the pool. The party would be starting soon. Everything looked great. The pool area was decorated in ballerinas and princesses. It looked great, and she knew that Ruby was going to be extremely happy. That was all that mattered to her.

She wished that she felt better about everything. She was extremely stressed out, and she knew that she was taking it out on everyone that she loved.

"Hey. There you are." Sookie found her best friend.

Lorelai turned around. "Hey is everything okay?"

Sookie nodded. "Yeah. All the food is ready to go. Ruby is running around with her ballerina bathing suit. She is just the cutest little princess."

"I can't wait to see her. I need to thank Mia for buying the suit."

"It's pink and sparkly. I hope I have a little girl. I want to do pink and sparkly." Sookie smiled and then frowned when she noticed Lorelai's face. "Oh honey, what's wrong?"

"Oh nothing." Lorelai wiped away a tear.

"That's not nothing." She gently grabbed Lorelai's arm and led her to one of the benches. "What's going on?"

"Really. Sook. I'm fine."

"You aren't fine." She pointed to Lorelai's face. "I know you. This. The tears. That's not normal."

Lorelai sighed. "Everything is falling apart." Tears fell from her eyes.

"What is falling apart?"

"I'm going crazy. I've singlehandedly yelled at everyone I love." Lorelai admitted.

"Lorelai, you want to tell me what's going on?"

"Christopher is in a lot of trouble. My dad thinks some pretty bad people are after him. Our very own mob story. I am so scared that something is going to happen to my babies." The tears wouldn't stop coming.

"Oh Lorelai." Sookie wrapped her arms around her. "It is going to be okay."

"You don't know that. I don't know that." Lorelai cried. "I yelled at Luke."

"Oh." Sookie tried her best to comfort her. "I'm sure Luke will understand."

"I'm the worst. Seriously. Luke has been so good to us." Lorelai felt horrible about what she said. "But I don't trust Rachel."

"Rachel is harmless." Sookie reassured her.

"She wants to be friends, but that just seems weird to me." Lorelai thought. "I'm dating her ex-boyfriend, the guy she loved for a long time and now he supposedly loves me."

"Luke loves you." Her eyes grew large and her heart filled with joy. "He loves you. He told you that he loves you." Sookie thought this was the best news she had ever heard.

"Well. No. Luke hasn't told me. Rachel told me."

"Oh."

"Instead of talking to Luke about it, I went crazy." Lorelai remembered. "I can still see his face. He was so confused. He was probably rethinking our entire relationship. God I would be so upset if that were the case."

"He loves you, Lorelai." Sookie smiled. "That's a big deal."

"I should have handled it differently." She shook her head. "I'm freaking out, Sookie. My kids think that I'm crazy. Luke thinks I'm crazy. Hell, I am crazy."

"You are not crazy. You are worried about your family. That's completely normal. They all will understand. I think you need to talk to Luke about what is going on with Christopher. You should talk to him."

"He gets extremely protective. I didn't want to worry him."

"He is probably worried now, and he doesn't even know what's going on." Sookie comforted her. "Talk to Luke. I think that it will help."

Lorelai nodded. She was right. "After the party. I'll talk to him. If he even decides to come."

"He'll be here. He wouldn't miss this."

"Thanks, Sookie." Lorelai hugged her. "I'm sorry for crying."

"You can cry on my shoulder anytime. I'll always have your back."

Lorelai was so thankful for her best friend.

"Mommy." Ruby ran to her mom and Sookie.

"Oh wow. That's my big girl." Lorelai wiped away her tears. She didn't want Ruby to know that she had been crying. "You look so cute."

"Do you like my suit?"

"It's the very best." She hugged her tight.

"This is going to be the best birthday ever." Ruby exclaimed.

"You bet." Lorelai looked up at Sookie.

"It is going to be the party of the year. Maybe even the century." Sookie exclaimed, trying to make Lorelai feel better.

"That sounds like a long time. I'll take it." Ruby danced around.

Sookie touched Lorelai's shoulder to let her know that everything was going to be okay. Lorelai wished that she believed that.

* * *

Emily and Richard were driving to Stars Hollow for the party. "I think Lorelai should have cancelled the party. What if something happens?" Emily explained to Richard.

Richard shook his head. "Lorelai doesn't want the kids to know about all of this."

"Well that's absurd. They need to know."

"Emily I understand how you feel, but this is Lorelai's decision."

"Uh. I hate this new approach we are taking with her." Emily sighed.

"It is for the best, Emily. If we don't let Lorelai make her own decisions,

"Mistakes." Emily interrupted.

Richard gave her a look. "Either way, we will lose her. We don't want that to happen. I don't about you, but I have missed my grandchildren. Quite frankly I have also missed my daughter. She needs us in her lives."

"Even we aren't allowed to tell her how we feel."

"I'm sure Lorelai knows how you feel without you ever having to say anything." Richard smiled.

Emily rolled her eyes.

"That's where our daughter gets it." Richard remarked.

Emily smiled. "At least she gets something from me."

Richard reached across the car and found Emily's hand. "I doubt anything is going to happen. Christopher would not show his face at his little girl's party."

"There were a lot of things that I never thought Christopher would do. He continues to surprise me." Emily still couldn't believe all the things that Christopher had done.

"Today is about our little granddaughter." Richard reminded her. "That is all that matters."

Emily nodded. His words didn't make her any less nervous.

* * *

At the diner Luke had gathered the rest of the hotdogs that Jess had not taken with him. His nephew had been right. He needed to go to Ruby's party. He and Lorelai would be fine. They had to be.

Just as he was about to leave, Rachel walked in pushing Artie's stroller. "Hi Luke."

"Rachel. Hey what are you doing here?"

"I came for lunch." She pointed at the hotdogs. "Where are you off to in such a hurry?"

"I'm going…You know what…no…I can't tell you everything anymore." Luke said more harshly than he intended.

"Oh. Luke. What's going on with you?" Rachel was a little surprised by his attitude. He was always grumpy but never rude.

"No. No. I just can't."

"Can you please explain to me what you are talking about?"

"Why did you come back?" He asked her. "Why?"

"I've already told you." Rachel didn't feel like she had to explain herself any further. "I'm not telling you again."

"Why are you talking to Lorelai? Are you trying to break us up?"

Rachel shook her head. "You have lost your mind." She opened the door and backed the stroller out of the diner.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm not trying to break anyone up. I know that you and I are done. I knew that before I came back into town and knew you were dating anyone. I'm not after you." She answered his previous question. "I want to be friends with Lorelai. I had no idea you hadn't told her how you felt, but then again I should have known because that's your prerogative. You are a horrible communicator. Maybe Lorelai is too. But tell her not to worry. I'll leave you both alone." Rachel stormed off quickly.

"Rachel." Luke yelled, but she was already gone. This sucked. All of it really sucked.

* * *

Ruby's party was in full swing. The little kids were swimming. Sookie was fooling around with the cake. It was a tall pink, sparkly cake with a ballerina sitting on top. Ms. Patty was flirting with Richard, much to Emily's disliking.

"I think you better go take care of that." Mia tapped Lorelai on the shoulder with a smile. "Your mother doesn't look too happy."

"I know. It's great." Lorelai smiled, devilishly.

"Lorelai." She pushed her forward.

"Okay. Okay. I'm going." Lorelai walked over to her parents and Ms. Patty. "Hi mom. Dad."

"Lorelai." Emily said pointing at Ms. Patty with her eyes.

"Oh Lorelai. You have the most beautiful father."

"Thanks. Patty. I'm going to steal my parents away." Lorelai said as she pushed her parents to the side.

"Bye darling." Ms. Patty waved at Richard.

"That woman." Emily was not impressed.

"She is harmless." Lorelai informed them. "I promise." She looked at her parents. They were dressed to the tee. "Aren't you guys hot?"

"Well now that you mention it, it is a little hot." Richard fiddled with his bowtie.

"We didn't know the party was outside." Emily added.

Lorelai gave them a look. "Really. Because I told you that it was a pool party." She couldn't wait to hear that explanation. "There was a pool on the invitation."

"I know. We thought the children would be outside, and that the adults would be inside."

"Who would watch the children?"

"The nanny." Emily said simply, as if it should be the only thing that made sense.

Lorelai shook her head. "We don't have a nanny. We do the child raising all on our own." She joked.

"Well excuse me for thinking there would be a nanny."

"The kids have never had a nanny. Babysitters but not a nanny."

"I still think it is a good idea." Emily argued.

"Mom. Please. Can we not get into this argument today?" It was a rhetorical question. "This is a celebration." She pointed at Ruby, who had just jumped into the pool. "That is how you celebrate. Sure you don't want to go for a dip."

Emily shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"Lorelai, have you changed your mind about security?" Richard asked.

"No dad." She pointed. "I'm not talking about that either. This is about Ruby. I'm not ruining today for her because Christopher is a screw up. Now. I am really glad that the two of you came. It means the world to Ruby. Okay. If you excuse me, I need to go check on the punch." Lorelai walked away.

Emily looked at Richard.

"What? I didn't do anything wrong. I had a valid question." Richard defended himself. "You are the one that brought up a nanny. You know that always upsets her."

"Anything I say upsets her." She knew there was nothing she could do to fix it.

* * *

Rory and Ryan were sitting on the edge of the pool. "Do you really think that dad is going to stay put?"

Ryan nodded. "I never know with dad."

"Mom is going to be pretty mad at us for keeping it a secret."

"Yeah well we are already grounded. What else can she do?" He joked.

"I guess you're right. I hate disappointing her."

"Dad has disappointed her enough for the both of us."

"It isn't fair." Rory thought. "We should tell her the truth."

"Rory, we will as soon as the party is over." Ryan touched her shoulder. "I promise."

"Fine." Rory stood up.

"Where are you going?"

"To see if mom needs any help. Don't worry I'm not going to say anything."

"Hey Rory." Jess said as the two past each other. "Hey man." He sat next to Ryan. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Come on. Spill it." Jess could tell something was bothering his friend, and he wasn't going to stop bugging him until he found out.

* * *

Lorelai was fixing herself a plate of snacks when she saw Luke walk in. She felt relieved to see him.

"Hi." She spoke first.

"I brought the hotdogs."

"Thanks." She took the plate from him.

"I'll take that." Sookie told them as she took the plate and walked away with the hotdogs.

"I'm glad you came." Lorelai wanted him to know that.

"I wouldn't miss this." Luke wanted her to know that.

"We should talk." Lorelai said reaching out for his hand.

Luke nodded. "Yeah. We should."

"Mommy." Ruby ran in-between them.

"Oh Ruby. You are all wet."

"I know." She looked up at Luke. "I'm so glad you are here, Lukey."

"Lukey. When did you start calling me Lukey?" Luke wasn't convinced he liked that name.

"It seems to fit." She hugged him.

"Ruby. Dry off first. You don't want to get Lukey wet." Lorelai laughed.

Luke shook his head. "I can do without that nickname."

Lorelai handed her daughter a towel. "I know you aren't done swimming."

"No. I'm not. Can I open a present though?"

"Not yet."

"Please." She begged. "Just one." She did her signature Ruby pout.

"Okay."

Ruby led her mom over to the present table. Luke was left to get himself some punch.

"Can I open this one?"

"Is there a name tag on it?"

Ruby shook her head.

"Okay. Go ahead."

Ruby smiled happily as she ripped into the package. It was a beautiful doll wearing a pink ballerina dress. The doll had a small necklace around its neck, and the doll was holding a little box. "Oh cool. The dolly has a present for me." She opened the box to reveal a necklace much like the one the doll was wearing. It read, Little Princess.

"That is a cool doll."

"I love it." She held the necklace up. "Will you put it on me?"

"Of course." Lorelai took the necklace and put it around her daughter's neck. "Perfect fit."

"Hey guys. What are you doing?" She said as she saw the opened package.

"Rory, isn't it beautiful?" Ruby gleamed.

"Yeah. It looks great." Rory looked up at her mom. "So I guess you know about dad."

"What?" Lorelai looked up at her daughter with a confused look.

"The present?" Rory was now confused.

Lorelai knelt down to her smallest daughter. "Why don't you go show your friends your necklace?"

Ruby nodded. "Okay. Mommy. I'm taking my doll too."

"Okay." Lorelai turned her attention back to her oldest daughter. "What is going on? Don't lie to me Rory."

Rory was frozen. She didn't know what to do.

Ryan watched on from afar. He could tell that his sister was speaking and the look on his mom's face. He didn't have to hear what was said to know what was said. He saw his mom walk away from Rory and head towards the potting shed.

She was going to be so disappointed in them.

* * *

Lorelai made her way to the potting shed. Rory told her that was where Christopher was hiding. When she walked into the tiny shed, she was expecting to see him for the first time in months, but the shed was empty. She shouldn't have been surprised. The only thing she noticed was a letter sitting on the bed. It was addressed to her.

She took a moment before opening the letter.

 _Dear Lorelai,_

 _By now you probably know some of what I have done. I can't apologize enough. I thought I could do this. The right thing. Obviously it isn't in my nature. I've done so many wrong things. I really am so sorry for everything that I have done. I never meant to hurt you and the kids. You all deserve so much better than me. That's why I'm leaving. I can't put you through anymore of my drama. This time I'm going to disappear, and you'll never have to worry about me again._

 _Don't be too mad at the kids for helping me out. I didn't give them much of a choice, and I don't think they know how much trouble I'm actually in. I know that you don't think this and neither do they, but I love them so much. I just wish I would have known how show it. I know you will take care of them, you always have._

 _I'm forever sorry,_

 _Christopher_

Lorelai couldn't believe this. She was mad at him. He was running away yet again. She wasn't going to let him do it again. She was going to make sure that he faced his mistakes this time.

* * *

Back at the party, Richard and Emily approached Ryan and Rory. "Where is your mother?" Richard asked.

"Um. She. I. We." Ryan really didn't know what to say.

"What is going on you two?" Emily asked more directly. "Tell us."

Before they could answer Emily's question, Lorelai reappeared in a hurry. "I have to go." She told them quickly.

"Lorelai." Richard reached for her arm.

"Dad. I've got to go. I don't know how long he has been gone." Her face was red from how mad she was feeling.

"Who?" Richard asked.

"Dad, please stay with the kids." She looked at Ryan and Rory. "We are going to have a long discussion about this later." She wanted him to know that.

"Mom." Rory was nervous about everything that was happened.

"Just stay with your grandparents, okay." Lorelai gave her a quick kiss on the forehead to reassure her that everything would be alright. She walked away.

Richard turned his attention to his grandchildren. "What is going on?"

"Start explaining." Emily added.

Ryan and Rory gave each other long looks. They knew that they had no other choice but to tell them what was going on.

* * *

In the Inn, Lorelai passed Luke. "Lorelai."

"I've got to go." She kissed him on the cheek. "We'll talk when I get back. I promise."

"Lorelai." He had a feeling something bad was about to happen. When she didn't turn around, he walked back outside to the pool. "Jess." Luke stopped his nephew. "What's going on?"

"I don't think I'm supposed to tell you."

"Jess. Start talking." Luke said sternly.

* * *

Lorelai made it to the bus stop in record time. She had a feeling that Christopher was there. That was the only way out of Stars Hollow unless he had stolen a car. That didn't seem like a smart idea for someone who was trying to disappear.

She had been right. Christopher was hiding in the corner wearing a gray hoodie.

She got out of her car and made her way to the bus stop. "Christopher."

He looked up at her, knowing that he had been quiet. "Lorelai. Please go." He didn't want to do this with her. He wanted to disappear.

"No. I'm not going to let you do this." She yelled.

"Lorelai. I've made a lot of mistakes." Christopher started.

"Yeah you have. I know that better than anyone." Lorelai told him. "I'm not going to let you run away from this. Not this time."

"Some bad people are after me. I won't even be safe in prison."

"You can't run for the rest of your life." Lorelai sighed. "That's not fair to the kids. I've been freaking out that something was going to happen to them." Lorelai had tears in her eyes. "If something happens to my babies because of the stupid mistakes that you have made, you won't have to worry about some thugs hurting you, because I will kill you, bring you back to life, and kill you again." She warned him.

"I'm trying to protect them."

"Bullshit. This isn't protecting them. You have never protected them." Lorelai yelled at him. "You are delusional if you think that what you are doing is protecting them. You can't keep running from your problems." She threw up her hands. "I don't want you to have anything to do with them anymore. Your days of disappointing them are over."

"Lorelai."

"You are going to turn yourself in." She stated. "You are going to serve your time." She continued. "And then you are going to stay as far away from us as possible."

Christopher nodded. "I'm scared." He admitted.

"I know. I'm scared too." Lorelai looked at him. He wasn't even close to the man she once knew. "But you have to face up to what you have done."

"I never wanted you to hate me."

"Hating you is an easy choice but honestly it gets me nowhere. I'm mad as hell, but I don't hate you. You gave me the greatest gifts. You are the father of my children." Lorelai informed him with tears in her eyes. "I'm sure my dad knows some pretty powerful attorneys who can get you a good deal."

"You would help me out after everything that I've done?" Christopher was surprised, but he shouldn't have been. That was the kind of person that Lorelai was.

"I'm mad, but I don't want to see you rotting away in prison." She admitted. "Don't get me wrong. I think you deserve to spend some time in prison. It might actually help you. Teach you what I think your parents forgot to teach you."

"What's that?"

"Actions have consequences. I let you get away with far too much in our marriage. I should have done something about the gambling. I shouldn't have let it slide time and time again."

Christopher took a breath. "There was nothing you could have done. I wouldn't have listened to you. I've finally learned my lesson though. I'm just afraid it is too late. If those people find me, I'm a dead man."

Lorelai didn't know what to say. The thought of what those men might do to her ex-husband terrified her. What those men could do to her children. To her.

"I'm so, so sorry." Christopher cried.

Lorelai nodded. "I know that."

Christopher leaned in to hug her. Out of the corner of her eye, Lorelai noticed a car speeding at them. "Christopher, watch out." She screamed as she pushed him out of the way of the car. The last thing she heard before everything went black, was Luke scream her name.

"Lorelai."

* * *

 **Don't kill me. Let me know what you thought!**


	71. Blur

**I appreciate all your reviews. You guys are the best! I'm glad you guys don't hate me. I hope I did this chapter justice.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 71: Blur**

Blur.

Dream.

Scratch that.

Nightmare.

Those were the words Luke would use describe the last hour of his life. He couldn't believe what was happening.

He was standing in the hospital emergency room, covered in blood, and he barely remembered how he had gotten to that point.

He could remember rushing to her side. Screaming for help. Calling 911. Holding her. Everything after that really was a blur.

People rushed to the scene. The car had sped off and hit a light pole in the distance. Christopher was on the ground, but Luke didn't think he had been hurt. At least not like Lorelai. Christopher went to where Lorelai had been thrown.

Luke remembered running to Christopher and shoving him away from Lorelai. "You stay the hell away from her." He said as he hit Christopher as hard as he possibly could, sending him backwards and back on the ground where he belonged. His attention shifted to the only person that mattered. Lorelai.

He remembered that she was still breathing. Thank God she was still breathing.

The rest really was a blur.

The ambulance arrived. He was forced to let her go. She was surrounded by paramedics.

He vaguely remembered Taylor. He kept asking Luke if he was okay. Luke kept shaking his head. He didn't want to be bothered. He wanted to make sure that Lorelai was okay. She had to be okay. There was so much left to say to her.

The police came and asked him some questions.

The paramedics led Lorelai into the ambulance on a gurney. Her eyes still weren't opened. Luke asked if he could ride, but they told him no. They needed room to work.

He knew that meant to save her. He didn't argue. He followed them in his truck.

They had gotten to the hospital in a blink of an eye. He wasn't even sure that he had parked in a parking place.

He followed them into the hospital but was asked to wait in the waiting room.

That was where he was now. Waiting. He absolutely hated hospitals. Nothing good ever came from being in a hospital. The worst part was the waiting and the wondering.

Was she going to be okay?

What had happened? Why did the car pummel into them?

He blamed Christopher. It had to be Christopher's fault. He should have hit him harder and longer.

Did the kids know? He was sure they had to know by now. His mind kept thinking of Ruby. Poor little girl.

When would they be there? What would he say?

He couldn't imagine what they would do if something were to happen to their mom. Lorelai was their everything. Hell, in such a short time, she had become his everything. He couldn't imagine his life without her.

Then he realized he had never told her how he felt. There were so many times that he wanted to tell her. So many missed opportunities. He should have told her. He felt stupid. His communication skills had never been that good, but he knew that if got the chance, he was going to get better at communicating with her. He wanted and needed her to know how he felt about her. He loved her so much. So much more than he ever thought possible.

He wanted to know what was going on. He wanted to know if Lorelai had to have surgery. There had been so much blood. He looked down at his shirt and cringed. His shirt was soaked in her blood. It made him want to throw up.

He was taken out of his thought at the sound of Lorelai's mother's voice. It was a distinct voice. One that could never be forgotten.

"I'm Lorelai Gilmore's mother. I demand to know where my daughter is."

"Ma'am I can't give you that information at the moment." The nurse said as calmly as possible.

"Like hell you can't."

"Emily." Richard touched her shoulder.

Luke heard all of this before getting up from his seat and walking into the hallway where he could see the desk. Emily was still shouting at the poor, innocent nurse. Luke felt bad for her. Richard was trying his best to calm his wife.

And then he saw it. The kids. Well at least Rory and Ryan. He wasn't sure where Ruby was. He was relieved that she wasn't there. She wouldn't understand. Hell, he didn't even understand. None of this made sense to him.

"Grandma," Rory tapped her grandmother's shoulder. "There's Luke." She pointed to him.

He walked closer to the nurse's station.

"Luke." Emily bolted towards him. "What happened? No one will tell us anything."

Luke heard her question, but his attention was still on the kids.

"That's a lot of blood." Ryan noted with tears in his eyes. "That's not your blood." He realized.

"Mom. That's mom's blood." The realization finally hit Rory like it had hit her brother. "Is she okay?"

"Why won't they tell us anything?" Emily demanded.

"They are working on her."

"Working on her? Like she is some kind of car." Now Richard was the one raising his voice. "They haven't told you anything."

Luke shook his head. "No."

"Damn it. I'm going to get answers." Richard walked away.

"Come on guys. We should go sit down." Luke motioned for the kids to follow him, but Rory was frozen. "Rory. Sweetheart."

"What happened, Luke?" Tears were streaming down her face. "What happened to our mom?"

"Rory." Luke didn't want to do this. He didn't want to tell her what happened. He shouldn't have even been there. He tracked her down once Jess had explained everything to him. He saw her talking to Christopher. He wished he had intervened. He should have intervened. Now he was standing in front of her daughter, and he was at a loss for words. He didn't want to tell her.

"Luke." Ryan nudged him. "What happened?"

"We should go sit down."

"That isn't going to change anything." Ryan shouted.

"Ryan. Luke is right. Let's walk this way." Emily was now being rational. She led her grandchildren to the waiting room. Luke followed. "We weren't told anything other than Lorelai had been in accident, and we needed to get to the hospital."

"She was hit by a car." The words were hard for him to say. They still didn't seem real. He kept having flashes of memory. Seeing the woman he loved being hit by a car. It would always be etched into his brain.

"Oh my God." Emily covered her mouth, but she tried to remain strong for the children.

"What?" Ryan couldn't believe what he was hearing. "She was hit by car."

"What was she doing? This has to do with our dad, right?" Rory knew that he had to be involved, and she felt an extreme amount of guilt. They should have told someone that their dad was in town.

Luke shook his head. "I don't know. She was with him, but I don't know his involvement."

"Did the car mean to hit her?" Ryan asked.

Luke didn't want to say. From what he saw, the car was aiming at Christopher.

"This doesn't make sense. Why would anyone ever want to hurt our mom?" Ryan was emotional.

Luke took the young boy in his arms and hugged him. It was exactly what his dad had done for him when his mother had gotten sick. Luke remembered how much it had comforted him, being wrapped in his dad's arms. He hoped he could bring that same comfort to Ryan. Rory joined in on the hug. She needed to be comforted too.

Emily watched on. Her mind running a mile a minute. Her daughter had been hit by car. She couldn't help but to think that it all could have been avoided. Somehow. Someway. One different decision could have changed everything.

"Emily." Richard said as he entered the waiting room.

"Richard, did you find out anything." Emily asked eagerly.

"Yes." Richard nodded. "She is in surgery now. It could be a few hours."

"What else did they say?"

"Not much."

Emily could tell by the sound of his voice that he was nervous and probably leaving out some of the detail. That worried her even more.

"We just have to wait."

"Grandpa, I don't want to wait." Ryan told him. All of this was killing him.

"Me either." Rory added.

"I know, but that is all we can do." Richard put his hand on Ryan's shoulder. "I know you both are scared. I'm scared too, but your mom is very strong, and I know that she is going to be okay."

Ryan nodded and then walked over to a chair and sat down. Rory followed her brother. She needed to be close to him right now.

Luke looked at the two kids. "I need to get some air." He walked out of the waiting room. He needed to find a safe place to think. Maybe even to cry. He didn't want to cry in front of Ryan and Rory.

* * *

Mia and Ruby walked into Lorelai's house carrying some of Ruby's unopened gifts. Mia had promised Emily and Richard that she would watch over Ruby while they were at the hospital. They were supposed to call her as soon as they heard anything.

Mia was a bundle of nerves waiting for her phone to ring. She didn't know what she would do without her Lorelai. Even though they hadn't known each other very long, Mia thought of Lorelai as a daughter. She loved her and the kids so much.

Ruby on the other hand was oblivious of the accident. She however, was upset. Her party had been ruined by all of the commotion, and she wasn't happy about it. "Mia." She sat some of the boxes down by the stairs.

"Yes sweetie pie." Mia dropped her packages by the stairs too.

"Why did mommy have to run an errand during my party? She didn't even get to have cake. That's her favorite part." Ruby exclaimed.

"Come here sweetie. Let's sit down." She walked over to the couch and sat down. Ruby followed her.

"What kind of errand was it? She has been gone for hours."

"Well sweetheart." Mia sighed. She wasn't sure what to say. One reason was because she really didn't know anything other than that there had been an accident, and Lorelai had been hurt. "Your mommy had to go to the hospital."

"Why? Is she sick?" Ruby asked innocently.

"There was a little accident." Mia stumbled over her words, trying to judge Ruby's facial expressions. "And your mommy had to go to the hospital."

"What kind of accident?"

"I'm not really sure." That was not a lie.

"We should go to the hospital." Ruby stood up.

Mia gently touched her arm. "We are going to wait here until your grandparents call. There is nothing we can do but wait. It is better to wait here. You can play with your new toys."

"I can't open them until mommy gets home." Ruby informed her. "She'd be really disappointed."

"Okay. You can play with your other toys."

"I want to see my mommy. She would want me to be at the hospital. I'm her good luck charm."

"I know Ruby." Mia hated the look on Ruby's face. It broke her heart. "But you can be her good luck charm from right here."

"But Mia." Ruby whined. "I want her."

"Oh come here sweetie." Mia wrapped her arms around the tiny little girl.

"I'm worried about her." She had tears in her eyes. "Mommy never gets sick."

"It is going to be okay, sweetie. Your mommy is a very, very strong lady, and I have to believe that she is going to be okay. The doctors are going to take very good care of her."

Ruby wiped away her tears. "Are Ryan and Rory with her? Because that seems unfair."

Mia nodded. "Oh sweetie."

"When mommy gets home I'm going to talk to her about treating us equally. It isn't fair that they get to do more things than me just because they are older. That's deswimanation." Ruby exclaimed.

Mia couldn't help but smile. "That's a big word for such a little girl."

"I pay attention." Ruby smiled through her tears.

"We will talk to her when she gets home." Mia decided to pacify the little girl.

"Good. I'm going to put my presents in my room. They can sit in the corner until my mommy gets home."

"That sounds like an excellent idea."

Ruby grabbed a few presents and ran off to her room.

Mia sighed as she stared at her phone which she was clutching in her hand. The waiting was the most nerve wracking thing Mia had ever experienced. Keeping Ruby occupied came in a close second.

* * *

Back at the hospital, Emily was sitting in-between Ryan and Rory in the waiting room. Luke still hadn't come back, and Richard had gone off again. He always became rather antsy when he was nervous and upset.

Emily glanced between her grandchildren. They were being extremely quiet and that didn't make her feel any better. She could only imagine how they were feeling.

"Are you two hungry?" She asked. "We could go to the vending machine thing your mother always raids during an emergency."

Rory's faced dropped at the word emergency. Emily immediately felt bad for saying it. "Oh I'm sorry, Rory."

"It's okay." Rory reassured her. "It's the truth. She loves a good vending machine. She likes to compare them. She says if you get something really good, then it is like winning the junk food lottery."

Emily smiled at that. She could only imagine with Lorelai. "Well let's go raid it."

Rory shook her head. "I'm not hungry."

Her grandson was still quiet.

"What about you young man?" Emily nudged him.

Ryan shook his head.

"You two have to be hungry. I never saw you eat at the party."

"How can we eat when mom is fighting for her life, and no one in this damn hospital will tell us anything?" Ryan raised his voice slightly at the end.

"Ryan, I know that you are upset, but you are not allowed to speak like that." Emily reprimanded. "It isn't very polite."

"I'm not feeling very polite." Ryan mumbled.

"I could go back to the nurses' station. They may have some news now." Emily said calmly, to her own surprise. Someone had to be calm.

Ryan shook his head. "I don't think it would do any good. I don't think these people care that we are Gilmores."

"The Gilmore name is very important. I will find something out." Emily stood up, but Rory gently grabbed her arm. Emily looked down at her granddaughter.

"Could you just stay here with us? I don't want to be alone." Rory said honestly.

Emily nodded and sat back down. "Of course."

They sat in silence for a few moments before Ryan spoke up again. "This is all my fault." He admitted. The guilt was eating him up inside.

"No it's all my fault." Rory interjected. "I knew that we should have told mom what we knew."

"What are you two talking about? How could any of this be your fault?" Emily asked.

"We knew that dad was in town and hiding out in the shed." Rory told her grandmother.

"We knew he was in trouble." Ryan added.

"She'll never forgive us." She had tears in her eyes. "If she even has the chance." Rory couldn't believe this was happening. She knew that it would backfire on them. Their dad was good at letting them down.

"I'll just be glad if she can yell at us again." Ryan also had tears in his eyes.

"Hey what is all this talk about if?" Emily wasn't having it. "I refuse to believe that your mother isn't going to be fine. She is a Gilmore after all, and Gilmores are fighters, and she is also very stubborn. She's not going to let some car take her out. That's absurd that we could even think that way." Emily placed a hand on each of their legs. "Yes. You should have told your mother what you knew, but nothing that happened is your fault. I've learned recently that your father can be very manipulative. That is not your fault. I know your mother. She isn't going to blame you for anything." Emily wanted them to know that.

"We should have told her. Dad was probably lying to us. He's probably in a lot more trouble than he told us. We don't even know what happened."

"You are right, Rory." Emily patted her leg. "We don't know what happened. There is no need to speculate. I am sure we will learn soon enough."

"I just feel so guilty." Ryan sighed. "I wish they would hurry up and tell us something. The waiting is killing us."

"That's why I think we should get some snacks. All of your mother's favorite." Emily stood up. "Come on. I am not taking no for an answer this time." She stood her ground. The kids needed something to take their mind off of everything.

* * *

Richard walked into the small hospital chapel. He needed a minute to clear his head away from Emily and the children. He expected the chapel to be empty but to his surprise, Luke was sitting in one of the few pews.

Richard knew what Luke was probably doing. He walked closer to the young man. "Care if I join you?" Richard asked.

Luke looked up, a little startled. He scooted over and made room for Richard in the pew. "I was just praying." He admitted.

Richard sat down. "You're a praying man?"

"Today I am, and anytime I find someone I love in this damn place."

"Well we have been here far too much this year."

Luke nodded. That was definitely true.

"I can't believe we are in this mess." Richard told Luke. "I never would have imagined that Christopher would have turned out this way. I thought if the two of them got married everything would be perfect. They were supposed to have a life like mine and Emily's. It was all set." Richard shook his head. "I don't think I have ever been so wrong."

"You never could have known." Luke hoped to help. "Have the police told you anything?" He was curious. He had no idea why all of this had happened.

Richard shook his head. "No. I'm assuming that this had to do with all the people who were after him."

"What people?" Luke asked. He knew that something was going on with Christopher, but Lorelai hadn't told him anything else.

"I'm sure Lorelai told you."

Luke shook his head. "She didn't tell me."

"I'm sure she was going to tell you." Richard was now the one reassuring Luke. "We found out that Christopher lost his job because he was embezzling from his company because he has a gambling problem."

"Lorelai told me about the gambling problem." Luke was surprised about the other. He wondered why she hadn't told him about everything. Maybe she tried and he hadn't listened.

"We never knew. She kept it to herself. I still remember blaming her for the divorce. It was because she didn't try hard enough. She never wanted to be a wife. She didn't care about the kids." Richard looked down sadly. "I never should have told her those things. I should have seen the signs. I should have known there was something else."

Luke sighed. He didn't know what to tell him. From what Lorelai had told him about her parents, Luke figured that they weren't very good listeners. He determined that the Gilmores wanted and needed things to be a certain way, and that Lorelai had probably never fit into that mold. Which meant that Luke would never fit into that mold either. "I just hope that she is alright. The kids need her. I need her."

"You love my daughter, don't you?" Richard aske as he turned to face Luke. The answer was written all over Luke's face.

Luke felt a little weirded out by the question. He also felt shy. A grown man should not feel shy. "Yes. I do." He admitted. "I wish I had told her how I felt. I never took the chance."

"You will get the chance." Richard wouldn't have it any other way. "Not so good at communicating I guess." He had a feeling.

Luke chuckled. He had guessed right. "I'm the worst. I have always been told that. I automatically think that people should know what I am thinking at all times. Life would be so much easier that way."

"Do you want me to let you in on a little secret?" Richard gave Luke a quick smile.

Luke nodded. He was still surprised he and Richard were having a conversation. He knew there was no way that he had anything in common with the man, other than Lorelai.

"Lorelai may talk a lot and very quickly, but she is horrible at communication. I'm afraid that she gets that from me. I've never known how to talk to my daughter." Richard hated it, but it was true. "I have a lot of regret when it comes to my relationship with her. We've never understood one another."

Richard chuckled. "I've been thinking a lot about Lorelai lately. Especially since all of this with Christopher has surfaced."

Luke nodded. Unsure of what to say.

"Specifically I keep thinking of her thirteenth birthday." Richard smiled at the thought.

"I bet she was a handful." Luke added. He could only imagine.

"Oh." Richard nodded with a smile. "You have no idea. She was very bright though. The brightest in her class. She had so much potential."

"What happened on her thirteenth birthday?" Luke asked.

"Emily always bought Lorelai's presents. It was usually something she didn't like. My daughter has never been very good at the subtle face."

Luke nodded in agreement. You could always tell by Lorelai's face how she was feeling.

"For some reason on her thirteenth birthday, I decided to go to the mall. I never go to the mall. I don't think I've been back ever since." Richard was pretty sure that was an accurate statement. He had never been a fan of the mall. "But that day I went to the mall and to my surprise I saw my thirteen year old daughter sitting in the food court. She was meant to be in school. As far as I knew they did not have a free day. At first I was furious. She was skipping school. I wasn't going to let her get away with that. I walked to the table and demanded she tell me what she was doing there. Why wasn't she in school? I was fully prepared to punish her. Ground her forever. But she looked up at me with those big blue eyes, and then she started to cry." Richard took a moment.

Luke was still listening. Still surprised that Richard was sharing this with him.

"There have been very few times that I have seen my daughter cry. Standing there in front of her watching her cry crushed my heart. At that moment, I forgot everything I was supposed to do that day. I walked away, I got her a pretzel, covered it in mustard, and returned to the table. When she finally looked up at me, she seemed surprised that I wasn't yelling. She also looked happy to have a pretzel. I could tell that she was hungry. I knew she probably didn't have any money."

"Lorelai is always hungry." Luke noted. "I've never met someone with an iron stomach like hers."

"True." Richard smiled and then continued his story. "I told her to get up and come with me. That day I took her to see a movie. Actually, we saw two that day. Grease and Unmarried Woman. Something for her and something for me." He sighed. "Then I took her home, gave her my sweater to cover up a top I assumed she had stolen from her mother's closet, and I told Emily I had picked her up from school and taken her to the club for a soda." Richard paused. "We never discussed it again. But I have thought about it a lot over the years. It was the best day I have ever spent with my daughter. I wish we would have had more of those moments over the years." Richard admitted.

Luke smiled at the story. It was a very nice story, and he felt privileged that Richard had shared it with him. "Why was she crying?" He wondered.

Richard shook his head. "You'll have to ask her." He didn't know. They had never talked about it. Richard didn't need to know.

Luke smiled. "Thanks, Mr. Gilmore."

"Richard. You should call me Richard."

"Richard." Luke smiled. "There is plenty of time for you to have more moments like that one."

"You are absolutely right." He hoped to build a better relationship with his daughter after all of this.

Luke looked at his watch. "I should probably get back to the waiting room. Maybe there is some news. Hopefully she is out of surgery."

Richard nodded and stood up. They were all hoping for some good news.

* * *

Back in the waiting room, Emily and the kids had raided the vending machine. There were snacks galore sitting on the table in front of them. "I think your mother would be proud of us." Emily said, hoping to cheer the children up.

Ryan nodded. "Yeah. She definitely would be."

"Why haven't we heard anything? We've been here forever." Rory asked her grandmother.

Emily patted her leg but before she could speak, Sookie and Jess entered the waiting room with tons of food.

"Whoa."

"Hey snickerdoodles." Sookie set the food down.

"Sookie. What are you doing here?" Rory gave her a hug.

Ryan looked at Jess.

"I wouldn't be anywhere else." Sookie told Rory as they pulled a part. "Is there any news?"

"Not yet."

"What are you doing here?" Ryan asked Jess.

"I had to bring burgers from Luke's." Jess held up the bags.

"Those are the only kind." Ryan smiled. He was happy to have his best friend with him.

"We appreciate the food." Emily told Sookie and Jess.

"Anything for Lorelai and the kids." Sookie told Emily. "We just love them so much." Sookie put her arm around Ryan.

"Jess." Luke said as he walked into the waiting room. "What are you doing here?"

Jess gave his Uncle a big hug. "I knew you needed me here with you."

"You brought burgers."

"Yeah."

Luke hugged the boy tight. "I'm glad you are here."

* * *

Outside in the hallway, Richard had been stopped by Detective Johnson. He informed Richard that the men who had been driving the car that hit Lorelai, had died instantly. Richard was relieved. Detective Johnson also told him that Christopher had been arrested and had been cooperating with the police. Richard didn't want to know anything else about Christopher. He had washed his hands of the man. He wanted nothing more to do with him or anything that he had done. They could throw the book at him for all that Richard cared.

Richard walked into the waiting room to see his family eating, even Emily was eating a hamburger. It was a sight he wasn't sure he had ever seen.

"Lorelai Gilmore." A doctor walked into the waiting room. He was still wearing his scrubs. Everyone moved towards the man. He wasn't sure who he was supposed to talk to.

"We are her parents." Richard spoke up.

"I'm Dr. Harrison." He looked at the kids and then back at the adults. "Could we talk privately?"

"No." Ryan said. "She's our mom. We should be able to hear." He pleaded with his grandfather.

"Anything you have to say you can say in front of all of us." Richard gave the doctor permission to continue.

"All we want to know, is that our daughter is okay." Emily held Rory tight.

"Your daughter is very lucky." Dr. Harrison began. "She has a broken arm, a few broken ribs, a concussion, and a small injury to her spleen. But no internal damage."

"That's good news." Emily thought.

"Yes. But."

"But." Luke repeated. That was never good.

"Lorelai lost a lot of blood. Which caused her heart rate to drop." Dr. Harrison told them. He wasn't sure how to say the next part without scaring the kids. He focused on Lorelai's parents. "We lost her for a few seconds."

"Oh no." Emily gasped holding Rory even tighter.

Luke held onto Ryan.

"But she is stable now and all of her vitals look good."

"So what now?" Richard asked.

"We have to wait for her to wake up in order to assess if there is any long term damage." Dr. Harrison informed them.

"When will that be?" Richard asked.

"That is completely up to Lorelai. It could be a couple of hours or a couple of days."

"More waiting." Emily muttered.

"I'm sorry."

"Can we see our mom?" Ryan asked.

"She is still in recovery but once she is moved to a room you can see her. I wouldn't recommend everyone going in all at once." Dr. Harrison told them.

"We understand." Richard agreed. "Thank you, Dr. Harrison."

"You're welcome." Dr. Harrison walked away.

Rory frowned. "Now we just wait for her to wake up." She rested her head on her grandmother's chest.

The waiting was the worst part.

* * *

 **I hope you guys liked the Richard and Luke scene. It took me forever to decide who I wanted him to tell that story to. I decided to go with Luke.**

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	72. Sleeping Beauty

**I am so very sorry for the lack of updates. This was a really hard chapter for me to write. I hope I did it some kind of justice, and you all enjoy it. I'm still excited that you guys want a second story.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 72: Sleeping Beauty**

It had been two days since Lorelai's accident, and she still hadn't woken up. The doctor reassured the family that it was normal, and she would wake up on her own time.

Luke wasn't convinced. He was worried that the longer it took her to wake up, the harder her recovery would be. He hadn't left the hospital since the accident. Neither had the Gilmores, including Rory and Ryan. Emily had tried to convince them to leave the hospital, but both kids refused. They weren't leaving until their mom woke up.

Luke walked into the waiting room, after getting a little fresh air. He hadn't gotten much air over the last few days. He was surprised that there weren't more people in the waiting room. It had been packed. He did notice Ryan sitting in the corner reading a book. It was a normal sight.

"Hey kid." Luke made his way to the corner. "Where is everyone?" He asked as he sat down.

Ryan looked up from his book. "They all went to the cafeteria. I wanted to be here in case the doctor came in to tell us that mom is awake." He closed his book. "Visiting hours are starting soon. I don't want to miss that."

"I know you don't want to hear this because neither do I, but you need to get some rest." Luke informed him.

"I don't." Ryan said pointedly.

"Your mom would understand." Luke smiled. "She'll probably kick my ass for not making you go home." Luke could only imagine.

"I want to be here when she wakes up."

"You don't have to go to Stars Hollow, but I think you should at least leave the hospital." Luke hoped that he was getting through to him. The young boy looked exhausted.

"You haven't left the hospital." Ryan pointed at Luke. "I'm following your example."

"You don't need to follow my example."

"Maybe you should leave the hospital too."

"Maybe I will." Luke lied. He knew that wasn't going to happen.

"I know that's not going to happen."

"Yeah." He smiled. "But it sounded good right."

Ryan raised an eyebrow. "How can you tell me to leave if you aren't willing to do the same?"

"I figured it was what your mom would want me to do."

Ryan nodded and then dropped his head. "I feel so guilty."

"Ry," Luke patted him on the shoulders. "We have already talked about this. You have nothing to feel guilty about."

"I screwed up." It didn't matter how many times people told him not to worry about it. He still did. "I should have told mom about dad being in town. This could have all been avoided."

"Hey. Your dad should have never asked you to keep something from your mom. I'm not a parent, but I know that's not good parenting."

"Well you have Jess." Ryan reminded him.

"That's true, and I would do anything to protect him. The same goes for you and your sisters." Luke spoke honestly.

"You've been more of a father to us in one year than our dad has ever been." Ryan sighed. "All those years, I blamed my mom for all the crap my dad did. She let me." He shook his head.

"That's called protecting your kid." Luke let him know.

Ryan smiled. He thought for a moment. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"Ryan." Luke closed his eyes. He didn't want to relive what happened ever again. It was bad enough that it kept replaying in his head.

"Please Luke. You've been so quiet about it."

"It doesn't matter.'

"You saw what happened."

"Ryan." Luke groaned.

"Please." Ryan gave him a look.

In that moment, Ryan looked a lot like his mom. It really got to Luke.

"Did my dad do it? Did he push my mom?"

"No." Luke said quickly. "God. No. Ryan. Christopher didn't push your mom. Your mom pushed your dad out of the way."

"Damn it." Ryan sighed. "Even after everything he has done to us, she is still protecting him. He doesn't deserve it." Ryan looked at Luke. "The car was coming for him?"

"Yes." Luke admitted.

"I heard the police say that it was two guys wanted for other crimes. Pretty bad people my dad got messed up with."

Luke nodded. That's what he had been told too.

"This really sucks."

Luke nodded. He thought for a moment. "If it makes you feel any better, I punched him in the face."

A smile crept across Ryan's face. His dad deserved it.

"And your dad is going to spend a long time in prison thinking about all of the mistakes he has made." Luke added.

"It really stinks that it came to this."

"I want you to go find Jess and get out this hospital for at least an hour."

"Luke." Ryan was now the one groaning.

"Here." Luke handed Ryan his cellphone. "Take my cell phone. I will call you if she wakes up while you are gone."

Ryan thought about it for a moment. "Thanks, Luke."

Luke gave him a hug.

"I'll go for one hour, and then when I get back you have to do the same."

"Well." Luke started to argue.

"No arguments."

"Okay."

"I'll be back."

Luke nodded. "Okay. Get some air."

"Okay." With that said Ryan walked out of the waiting room.

Luke was only alone for a few minutes. Rachel walked into the room carrying bags of Luke's food. "Rachel." He stood up. "What are you doing here?" He was surprised to see her.

"I figured you could use a friend." She said sympathetically.

"But I thought…" He pointed awkwardly, referring to the other night at the diner.

Rachel shook her head. "I care about you Luke. We have to figure out how to be friends. We've never just been friends before, but I want you in my life." Rachel admitted.

Luke nodded and the two sat down. "I want the same. I'm sorry about the other day."

"Oh Luke." Rachel waved him off. "It's okay. I understand. I get why you were upset. I get why Lorelai would be worried." She smiled and touched his shoulder softly. "I was mad at first, but I get it. I shouldn't have pushed Lorelai to be my friend, and I shouldn't have told her about what you had told me. It's all kind of awkward. I know that." Rachel made a face.

"I honestly think Lorelai was just a little stressed out with everything that was happening. She was keeping a lot of information to herself, and I think that she took it out on me."

"I swear that I'm not here to get back together." She wanted him to know that. She hoped she wouldn't have to say it again. She felt like a damn broken record. "I felt so alone after I had Artie. I kept thinking about Stars Hollow and the life that Artie could have if we moved home."

"I know. I'm sorry for accusing you of anything different." Luke sighed. "I think I was also a little stressed out too."

"All is forgiven." She held out her hand. "Friends."

Luke shook her hand. "Friends." He smiled. It was nice to have a friend there with him. "Where's Artie?"

"With Babette. I told her I was coming here, and she offered to keep him." Rachel told him. "I know how much you hate hospitals."

Luke nodded. "Yeah. They aren't my favorite, that's for sure. Brings up a lot of bad memories."

"I'm sorry Luke. I hate that this happened."

"Yeah me too." He said sadly.

"I heard Lorelai is expected to make a full recovery. At least that is the word going around town."

"Yeah. If she would ever wake up. The waiting really sucks. We can't fully know how her recovery is going to be until she wakes up."

"You look exhausted. Maybe you should go home."

"I'm not leaving." He responded quickly.

"I thought that I would give it a shot."

"I can't leave until she wakes up." Luke said matter-of-factly. "I have to tell her how I feel."

"She knows." Rachel smiled. "Remember I told her." She reminded him.

"I need to tell her. I want it to come from me."

"Okay well I can stay and keep you company. Are you hungry?"

"Yeah but you know I'm not a fan of that food." He laughed.

"Ironic. Considering you make a living selling this stuff." She teased. "I had Caesar grill you some chicken and make green beans."

"Thanks, buddy." He smiled.

"I'm always here for you." She handed him the bag with his food. She wanted him to know that she cared.

* * *

"Yes." Richard said into his phone. "I will meet you there. Thank you." Richard hung up the phone and turned to see Emily coming out of the cafeteria.

"The food here really is God awful. We should donate money to that poor cafeteria. I bet people come in here feeling great and leave in a body bag after tasting that food."

"We will look into it dear." Richard said only half listening to his wife.

"What is going on with you?"

"Oh nothing." He looked at his watch. "I have to run an errand."

"What? Right now?" Emily questioned. His only response was a nod. "Why? Visiting hours start soon."

"It's a work thing." Richard was clearly lying. "Just something I have to take care of."

"Richard." Emily gave him a stern look.

He gave her a quick kiss on the forehead. "I'll be back before you even realize that I'm gone. Hopefully by the time I get back, Lorelai will be awake and telling horrible jokes." Richard walked away from his wife like a man on a mission.

Emily was worried because she had a feeling her husband was up to something. She did not like it when Richard kept things from her.

* * *

Jess walked around the corner from the vending machine when Ryan grabbed his shoulder. "Hey. There you are."

"Man. You scared me. What's wrong with you?" Jess jumped.

"I've been looking all over for you."

"Why?"

"I need you to go somewhere with me. Your Uncle Luke gave me orders."

"He told you to leave, when he won't even leave."

"Yeah adults have such a double standard." Ryan joked. "I need you to go somewhere with me."

"Why does it seem like we are going to get in trouble?" Jess pointed.

"We aren't going to get into any trouble." Ryan promised. "I just have something I need to do."

"Fine." Jess reluctantly agreed. He had a feeling Ryan was going to get them into something. Trouble always had a way of finding them.

* * *

"Luuuuke." Ruby ran into the waiting room where Luke and Rachel were still sitting. He had already eaten some of the food that Rachel brought from the diner. Luke was surprised to see Ruby. He had talked to Mia, and they agreed Ruby would come once Lorelai had woken up.

"Ruby." Luke stood up and the little girl ran into his arms.

She had missed him.

Mia slowly followed behind Ruby. "Ruby, I told you to wait up young lady." Mia told her sternly. She had definitely had her hands full the last few days. Ruby was very upset that she wasn't allowed to go to the hospital. She felt like she was being mistreated because she was only seven.

"You were going too slowly, Mia." Ruby said exasperatedly.

"Ruby." Luke said in a stern tone, narrowing his eyebrows at the little girl.

Ruby sighed and crossed her arms across her. "I'm sorry Mia."

"It's alright, Ruby." Mia decided to let it go. She had battled with the little girl way too much already.

"What are you two doing here?" Luke asked, looking up at Mia.

"Ruby was adamant about seeing her mom." Mia informed him. She then saw that Rachel was there. "Hi. Rachel."

"Hey Mia." Rachel smiled at the woman. "I'm gonna go get something else to drink." Rachel told Luke as she stood up and walked out of the waiting room. She felt like they needed a minute to talk to Ruby alone.

"I need to see my mommy right now." Ruby stomped her feet.

"Hey." Luke took her hand and led her to a seat. "Ruby, you aren't being very nice. You're mommy would not be happy with your behavior." He sat beside her.

Ruby glared at Luke and then looked up at Mia. Luke could tell she was thinking long and hard regarding what she was going to say. "Mommy isn't waking up because I'm not here. She needs to see me. I know once she knows that I'm here that she will wake up." Ruby said, sitting in her chair and her arms crossed.

"Ruby." Luke took a moment. "You're mommy is going to wake up."

"I know. I'm here now." Ruby uncrossed her arms. "I'm sorry for being huffy and puffy, but I miss my mommy. I'm ready for her to come home." She looked at Mia. "You are great Mia, but my mommy makes the best pop tarts. I miss her pop tarts."

Mia smiled. "Oh Ruby." She sat on the other side of her.

"Please let me see my mommy." She looked at both of the adults.

Before either one of them could answer, Emily and Rory walked into the waiting room. "Ruby." Both Emily and Rory said in unison.

"Rory. Grandma." She jumped up from her chair and hugged both of them.

"What are you doing here?" Emily asked.

"I need to see my mommy." Ruby explained. "She needs to see me."

"Ruby," Rory started. "Mom is sleeping."

"That's what I am trying to tell you people." Ruby threw her hands in the air. "Mommy will wake up as soon as she knows I'm here. I just know it."

Emily smiled. She bent down next to her granddaughter. "I bet you are right."

Luke and Mia were a little surprised by Emily's light town. She had always appeared hard and uppity in their opinion.

"Really?" Rory looked at her grandmother.

Emily nodded. "You can come back with us."

"Yay." Ruby wrapped her arms around Emily's neck. "Thanks, grandma."

Luke smiled. Maybe Ruby was exactly what they needed to get Lorelai to wake up. At least he hoped so.

* * *

Jess and Ryan were standing outside of a police station. "Okay. This can't be good." Jess shook his head as he stared at Ryan. "What the hell are we doing here?" He pointed up at the police sign.

"I heard an officer tell my grandfather that my dad was going to be here for at least a week." Ryan explained. "Then he'll be transferred to an actual prison, a couple of hours away. He has already entered a guilty plea. His sentencing hearing will be in a few days."

"Okay." Jess made a face. "But that still doesn't explain to me why we are here."

"I need to see my dad."

"Why?" Jess didn't understand. He didn't think that Ryan would ever want to see his dad again.

"Because. I just need to see him."

"Oh." It still didn't make sense to him.

"Please. Just wait for me."

Jess nodded. "Fine. But I don't know how I feel about this." He said with his arms crossed.

"Yeah me either." Ryan reached for the door, but before he could enter the police station, he was surprised by his grandfather. "Grandpa."

"Ryan." Richard was surprised. "What on earth are you doing here?"

"I was wondering the same thing about you."

"I'm the one asking the questions." Richard pointed. "Does anyone know that you are here?"

"Now you do." Ryan smiled. Richard was not amused. "Luke knew that we were leaving the hospital."

"But you didn't tell anyone where you were going." Richard determined.

Ryan shrugged. Jess stayed quiet. "No sir. I needed to see my dad. I didn't think anyone would understand."

"You are right. No one would understand because you do not need to see Christopher." Richard said sharply.

"Did you see him?" Ryan asked.

"Yes." Richard nodded.

"Then why can't I see him." Ryan wondered.

"No one in our family needs to be around that man ever again." He told his grandson firmly.

"He is my dad." Ryan told him.

"Not anymore." Richard said matter-of-factly.

"What does that mean?" Ryan asked.

"Christopher has signed over all of his parental rights." Richard informed the young boy.

Ryan was shocked. "What?"

"He is no longer your father." Richard acted as if it was no big deal. "You and your sisters are no longer allowed to see that man without parental consent."

Ryan couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Grandpa."

"This is the way that it has to be."

Ryan looked over at Jess, who didn't know what to say.

"I can't believe he would just sign over his rights with no questions asked." Ryan frowned.

"Ryan it really is for the best." Richard touched his shoulder. Ryan wasn't sure how to feel. "Now I am going to take you both back to the hospital."

Ryan looked at Jess as Richard walked ahead of the boys.

"Are you okay?" Jess asked.

"I guess it makes sense."

"How do you think your mom is going to feel?" Jess wondered.

Ryan shrugged. "I don't know. I just wish she would hurry and wake up. I'm ready for her to be in charge again." Ryan couldn't believe his dad had so easily signed away his rights.

* * *

"Okay. Ruby. You can't be too loud." Emily warned Ruby as she and Rory walked into Lorelai's hospital room.

"I'm never loud." Ruby smiled with her big blue eyes.

"You are a little loud." Rory squeezed her little sister's hand. "Mommy is asleep, okay. So she isn't going to talk to you."

"She'll talk to me." Ruby let go of their hands and ran further into the room.

"Ruby. No running." Emily scolded but Ruby didn't listen. She was already sitting on her mommy's bed.

Lorelai was surrounded by monitors. Her arm was in a cast. Her face was black and blue. It was a painful sight for Emily and Rory to see, but Ruby didn't seem to mind it.

"Mommy." She placed her little hand on Lorelai's face. "I'm here, mommy. You can wake up now."

Lorelai didn't move and her eyes didn't open.

"I'm ready for you to come home." Ruby told her. "I haven't opened my presents yet. I can't open them until you get home."

"I'm sure your mom wouldn't mind if you opened them without her."

"No." Ruby said firmly. "I have to wait on her. She loves opening presents. It is one of her favorite parts about birthdays."

"She does like to see our faces when we open our gifts." Rory told her grandmother.

"Well then she will have to wake up soon." Emily patted the bed.

"I miss you so much, mommy." Ruby leaned over and kissed her mommy on the forehead. She looked at Rory. "I'm ready for her to wake up now."

"She will. It is just going to take her some time."

Ruby kissed Lorelai again.

"Rory, you should take Ruby to the vending machine." Emily pulled some cash out of her wallet.

"We just got here." Ruby told her grandmother.

"I know sweetie. I want a minute with your mom." Emily told her littlest granddaughter.

"She can't hear you." Ruby gave her grandmother a pointed look.

"Maybe she can."

Ruby turned to Lorelai. "Mommy, if you can hear this I want you to know that I love you more than the stars in the sky. You are my very bestest friend in the whole world." She gave her another kiss. "I promise if you hurry up and wake up I will be really good at school and never get into trouble, and I'll even let you pick the movie on movie night. No more cartoons."

Rory and Emily both smiled. That was a pretty big deal for Ruby.

"I love you mommy." She gave her another kiss on the forehead.

"Come on, Ru." Rory grabbed her hand and helped her off of the bed. She leaned over and gave her mom a kiss on the forehead. "Love you, mom. We will get you a chocolate bar for you to have when you wake up." Rory turned to her grandmother. "We can get you something too."

"That's alright. I'm fine. You two get whatever you want."

"Thanks, grandma." Rory took Ruby's hand and led her out of the hospital room.

Emily sat down beside Lorelai's bed. "I know that you like your sleep, but you've currently beaten your record. So you can wake up now." Emily sighed. "I remember when you were a little girl, you would beg for a few more minutes for over an hour. There were some mornings where we would have to drag you out of bed kicking and screaming. It used to drive me crazy. Actually most things that you did, drove me crazy. I thought you were doing it all on purpose." Emily sighed again. "I took all of those moments for granted."

Emily grabbed Lorelai's hand. "I wish that I had known how to relate to you when you were growing up. I'll never say this again, but I'm sorry that I made you marry Christopher. I was wrong." Emily shook her head. "He did not turn out to be the man that I thought he would be. All I ever wanted was for you to have a wonderful life. I wanted you to have what your father and I have. Christopher didn't give you that life, but maybe you can have that life with Luke." Emily couldn't believe she was actually saying that. Luke was not the type of man that she would have picked for her daughter, but maybe Lorelai knew better. Emily had to learn how to let Lorelai make her own decisions. "I love you, Lorelai." She squeezed her daughter's hand and then kissed her forehead. "I wish I would have been able to tell you that more often because it is true." She took a breath and then walked out of the hospital room. She was sure that Luke and Sookie would want to visit with her.

* * *

Soon after Emily left Lorelai's room, Sookie entered carrying a steaming cup of coffee. Mia followed behind her. "Oh sweetie." Sookie said as she walked to Lorelai's bedside. "I brought your favorite coffee." She turned to Mia. "I figured if anything could get her to wake up, it would be coffee."

"She does love coffee."

Sookie turned back to Lorelai. "Oh look at her. She still looks beautiful even after being hit by a car."

"That's our girl."

Sookie touched her stomach. "The baby is kicking. She can't wait to meet her Aunt Lorelai."

"She?" Mia looked at her.

Sookie grinned from ear to ear. "Yeah. I found out yesterday. I think it is a sign that everything is going to be okay."

Mia hugged her. "Lorelai is going to be so excited."

"I know." Sookie was so happy and so upset all at the same time. "I can't wait for her to wake up so that I can tell her." She turned back to Lorelai and waved the coffee gently. "Come on, Lorelai. Smell that. It's coffee goodness. Your absolute favorite." She sighed. "I really hate seeing her like this." She had tears in her eyes.

"Oh Sookie." Mia comforted her. "She is going to be okay."

"I know." She bellowed. "I'm just emotional. It's the baby. She is making me this way." Sookie sniffled. "I just hate that this happened to her. She deserves so much better."

"At least she is alive. That's what we have to be thankful for. We still have her." Mia tried to make Sookie feel better. She also hoped to make herself feel better. Mia also hated to see her like this. It wasn't fair. "I was going to wait and tell you this until after Lorelai woke up, but I've decided to stay another year."

Sookie was surprised. "What? I thought you were excited about moving to North Carolina. Your son is waiting on you." She reminded Mia.

"Yes. I know. I think that I need to stay in Stars Hollow a little longer. My journey there isn't over. I can't imagine leaving my girls right now."

"Are you doing this because of the accident?" Sookie questioned.

Mia shook her head and waved her hand gently. "No. Absolutely not. It just feels right. I can move to North Carolina next year or even in six months. I have all the time in the world."

"Oh Mia." Sookie hugged her tightly. "I'm so excited." She touched her stomach. "Baby no name Bellville is so excited." She looked at Lorelai. "And Lorelai is going to be so excited."

Mia smiled happily. She knew that she was making the right decision. She touched Lorelai's arm softly. "Well she needs to wake up so that we can tell her the good news."

Sookie nodded in agreement.

* * *

In the hallway, Luke ran into Ryan and Jess on his way to see Lorelai. "Hey. Did you guys get some air?"

Jess awkwardly looked at Ryan. "You could say that."

"What's wrong?"

Ryan shrugged. He didn't want to talk about it.

"Jess." Luke looked at his nephew. "Could you give us a minute?"

Jess nodded. "Sure." He gave his friend one last look before walking towards the waiting room.

Luke pulled Ryan towards the corner. "What going on?"

Ryan didn't say anything.

"I was about to go see your mom."

Ryan sighed.

"Come on. You know that you can talk to me about anything." Luke reassured him with a pat on the back.

Ryan really didn't want to talk about it. Before he could stop it, he could feel tears forming in his eyes. He couldn't believe that he was that upset.

"Ryan." He awkwardly pulled Ryan into a hug. "Is it because of you mom? She is going to be okay, buddy. I promise. Your mom is a fighter."

"My dad is the biggest jackass around, and I'm pretty pissed at my grandpa too."

"What happened? What did they do?"

Ryan shook his head. "My dad has always been loser. He has never wanted us before. Why should I expect any different now? I shouldn't be so upset or surprised." He wiped away a tear.

"What are you talking about, Ryan?" Luke needed a little more information.

"My dad signed over his parental rights. He isn't our dad anymore."

Luke was a little surprised. "How do you know that?"

"I went to the police station." Ryan admitted.

Luke eyes grew and he sighed. "That's not what I had in mind when I told you to get some air."

"I know that. I needed to talk to him."

"And he told you that he signed away his rights?" Luke was still trying to process the information Ryan was slowly giving him.

"No. I never saw my dad." Ryan informed him.

"Richard." Luke pieced it together.

"Grandpa took it upon himself to take care of things. He said that I wasn't allowed to see my dad anymore."

"Ryan." He didn't know what else to say.

"I don't even care about seeing my dad. I wanted to tell him how I felt. How mad I was at him. I should be able to do that." Ryan dropped his head.

"Hey." Luke lifted his head. "It's going to be okay."

Ryan nodded in agreement. He knew that Luke was right. He didn't need his dad. "I know. I'll be fine." He snorted softly. "Please don't tell anyone that I was crying like a little baby. Ruby will never let me live it down."

Luke gave him another hug. "Your secret is safe with me."

"Thanks."

"You want to go with me to see your mom?" Luke asked. He was ready to see Lorelai.

Ryan shook his head. "You go ahead. I need a minute."

"You sure that you are okay?"

Ryan nodded. "Yeah."

"I'm here for you." Luke wanted him to know that.

Ryan smiled. He didn't have to say anything. They would all get through it together.

After walking away from Ryan, Luke made his way into Lorelai's room. He smiled when he saw the cup of coffee. He knew that had to be Sookie's doing.

He slowly walked to her bed, kissed her forehead, and sat down next to her. "Hey there crazy lady." He squeezed her hand gently. "You've got a lot of people waiting for you to wake up. You are the complete center of attention." He shook his head as he smiled thinking about how she would be acting. "I know you would be smiling about it if you were awake. Bragging about how special you were. You are pretty special. I really wish you were awake because I want you to know that I have taken a vow." He paused for a moment. "You would be laughing at me right about now. I'm being a little sappy. I'm not a sappy person. I've never been very good at this relationship thing, specifically the communication part of things." He sighed. "I'm more of a monosyllabic kind of man. But you Lorelai Gilmore have turned me into someone who wants to talk more. That is saying a whole hell of a lot." He took a moment. "I want you to know how I feel, and I vow to tell you what I'm feeling first next time." He held her hand tight. "I love you, Lorelai. I've know that for a very long time now. I tried to tell you, but every damn time something seemed to stop me. That's been our story. You know. I figured it out when your coffee consumption didn't bother me. When your million references made me smile. When the thought of never seeing you again made me want to jump out of a building." He smiled. "I never thought that I wanted this, but now that I have it, I couldn't imagine my life without it. So I need you to wake up so that I can tell you how much I love you."

Luke smiled and continued to hold her hand. A few minutes passed and he was surprised when she squeezed his hand back. "Lorelai." He looked up at her. Her eyes began to move. Luke could feel his heart beating faster as he watched.

"I love you too, Luke Danes." She said weakly as her eyes opened.

"Lorelai." Luke was so happy. He would never be able to explain it.

"Hey." She tried to smile. Everything hurt. She felt like she had been hit by a bus. "Can I have some coffee?"

Luke laughed. "Thank God you are back." He kissed her forehead.

She took a moment. It hurt to talk. That was not something she was used to. "I'm not joking. I need that coffee." She looked over at the table. "I think it is what brought me back." She joked.

Luke shook his head. Only Lorelai. "I don't care what brought you back as long as you are back." He kissed her again.

"Where are my babies?"

He didn't want to leave her, but he knew she needed to see her kids. "I'll go get them."

"Hurry back."

Luke nodded. "I'll be right back." He released her hand.

Luke walked out of the room and was happy to see the kids walking down the hall with their grandparents.

"Guys." He waved.

He didn't have to say anything else. The kids knew by the look on his face that their mom was awake. They walked quickly down the hall and were happily reunited with their mom.

Emily and Richard watched on. They were happy that their daughter was finally awake, but they also knew that there was probably going to be a long road to recovery. They would be there for her every step of the way, whether she liked it or not.

* * *

 **Let me know what you guys thought! I'll update soon! Only a few more chapters left!**


	73. Happily Ever After

**So this was not the plan, but as I finished the chapter, I realized that it was a very good place to end this story. I am so thankful for all the support you all gave this story and me. I was worried no one would want to read my take on the Gilmore universe, but I'm glad that I was wrong.**

 **I do plan on doing a sequel. It might be a few weeks before I get it posted, but I do have some story lines planned. I will post in here when I have posted the new story. I think it is going to be called Our Home or some variation of that.**

 **Hope you all enjoy the final chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 73: Happily Ever After**

Hospitals were the worst.

Seriously. The worst.

After she woke up from her slumber, Lorelai was force to stay in the hospital for three more days. The doctor wanted to monitor her condition and make sure that she didn't contract any type of infection. They had been the longest three days of her life, and she was positive that it couldn't get worse. Or so she thought.

On the day that she was supposed to be released, the doctor informed her that she needed to be on bedrest for two weeks and they would re-evaluate the situation at her first check-up. Unfortunately for Lorelai, her mother had been in the room and had insisted that Lorelai and the kids come stay at the Gilmore mansion so that she could take care of her.

Lorelai responded with a big hell no and that she would be fine at home with the kids, but Emily Gilmore worked her magic, and the doctor made it sound like it was necessary that she go home with her parents.

So now three days later, she was sitting in her old bedroom as miserable as she remembered. She felt suffocated. Her mother kept sending the maid up to check on her and anytime Emily came into the room, she made some kind of off-putting comment about whatever Lorelai was watching on TV. Lorelai had made her parents find her a TV. If she were going to be trapped in her childhood hell, she wanted to make sure she had something to keep her mind off of it.

Fortunately, she had her kids with her. They were making her misery better. She wished that she was back in Stars Hollow and that Luke was by her side. They had finally admitted their feelings for one another and all she wanted was to be close to him.

If she were to admit it, she was in a lot of pain. She was trying to maintain a poker face around the kids. She could tell they were all just happy that she was doing better. She and Ruby had opened some of the presents that she received from the party. Lorelai had been pleasantly surprised that Ruby had been able to wait to open the presents. She was impressed with Ruby's willpower. Lorelai would never have been able to wait. She loved presents way too much.

Lorelai had yet to talk to the Ryan and Rory about Christopher and everything that happened. She was still trying to get her strength back. She knew they probably had a million questions and quite frankly she had some questions for them as well.

Luke had been the only person that had wanted to talk to her about Christopher. It was the second day that she was in the hospital. Her parents had taken the kids home, and Luke had asked if he could stay with her. Of course Lorelai said yes.

 _Luke was sitting on Lorelai's bed watching her eat. "I'm glad to see that you have finally gotten your appetite back."_

" _Yeah." She made a face. "I wish the food was better."_

" _It's hospital food."_

" _You could sneak me a hamburger in." Lorelai nodded her head quickly and smiled deviously as she pushed her veggies to the side._

 _Luke shook his head. "Eat your veggies. They are good for you."_

" _Ewe." She made a face. "If you really loved me, then you would definitely bring me a hamburger."_

 _Luke smiled and pushed her veggies back towards her. "I do love you."_

" _I know." She was happy to hear those words come out of his mouth. "I just wanted to hear you say it."_

" _I love you." He said it again, his cheeks turning a slight shade of red as he said it._

" _Kiss." She said as she puckered her lips. Luke leaned up and gave her a quick kiss on the lips._

" _You aren't going to distract me with a kiss. You still need to eat those veggies."_

" _All full." She pushed the tray away from her._

" _Okay."_

" _You know you can move closer to me." She scooted over in the bed and made room for him. "I'm not going to break."_

 _Luke joined her. She rested her head on his shoulder. "How are you feeling?" He asked._

" _Like I was hit by a car." Lorelai joked but noticed how Luke's breath changed. "Too soon."_

" _Yeah. Way too soon."_

" _Sorry. I think I need to joke about it or else it seems too real."_

" _Lorelai," Luke stroked her hair and then kissed her forehead. "It was way too real."_

 _Lorelai was quiet for a moment. She hadn't talked to anyone about what had happened other than when her dad told her that Christopher was in jail and had pleaded guilty to all of the charges against him. Ruby had come into the room before they could say anything else._

 _And now here she was, unsure of what to say to Luke. Where they should even begin. Fortunately for her, Luke had taken the first step. "I was there."_

" _I know." Lorelai admitted, taking Luke by surprise._

" _How?"_

" _I don't remember a whole lot about the accident, but I do remember hearing your voice. You said my name."_

 _Luke nodded. "You scared the hell out of me. I saw the car coming towards you and Christopher. I thought it was going to hit him, but you pushed him out of the way."_

 _Lorelai was quiet._

" _Why?" Luke asked._

" _What?"_

" _Why did you push him out of the way?"_

" _Wow." Lorelai positioned herself so that she could see him better, but in away where she was not in any pain. "When did you become an investigator?" She asked sarcastically._

" _Don't deflect." He knew how she was, but he wasn't going to let her do that this time._

" _You really get right to the tough questions."_

" _I need to know." Luke stood firm with her. "The kids were asking all of these questions about the accident, and I didn't know what to say. It doesn't make sense to me. That car was headed right towards Christopher." Luke wanted her to know how he felt about it. He reached down for her hand to let her know that she could tell him anything._

 _Lorelai sighed. "I don't know." She admitted._

 _Luke wasn't sure he believed her._

" _I know that seems like some kind of copout, but it's the truth." Lorelai shook her head. "It was my instinct to push him out of the way. I've been protecting Christopher since before I got pregnant. I know that sounds stupid."_

" _No." He shook his head and held her hand tight. "It doesn't sound stupid."_

 _Lorelai looked down. It wasn't normal for her to be at a loss for words, but she wasn't sure what to say. "Ever since I woke up, I've been playing the whole thing over and over in my head. I don't remember much. It all happened so quickly. I wasn't thinking clearly." Tears were beginning to form in her eyes._

" _Lorelai."_

" _I keep thinking what if – You know what if something would have happened to me. I'm not actually wonder woman. I'm not as invincible as I'd like to think I am." Her voice broke. "What would have happened to my kids? Chris is going to jail. I don't want them to grow up in my parents' world. That's not acceptable."_

" _I would have been there for them. I'll always be there for them and for you." He said sincerely._

 _Lorelai was quiet for a moment. "I've realized through all of this, that I need a will."_

" _Lorelai." Luke didn't want to talk about that. He didn't want to think about her needing a will._

" _I want things to be done my way. Even if I'm not here. A legal binding document to protect my kids. That's what I need."_

" _You don't already have one?" Luke wondered._

" _I never really thought that I needed one."_

" _You've got my full support." Luke told her._

" _Good." She nodded. That was really good because her next thought was very important. "I want you to be legally responsible for them. If something happens to me, Luke."_

 _Now Luke was the one who was quiet._

" _Luke." She squeezed his hand. "You didn't pass out on me did you?"_

" _One condition." He said softly._

 _Lorelai smiled as she contemplated what the condition might be. "What's that?"_

" _You can have your legal binding document. I can be their guardian if something ever happens to you." Luke told her. "But you have to promise that nothing will ever happen to you. The document is just some sort of peace of mind for you." He leaned up so that he was facing her. "I can tell you right now, that I don't want a life without you. In such a short time you and the kids have become my life, along with Jess." He told her happily. "You are not allowed to jump in front of anymore cars. You can't get sick. I'd actually be okay if you lived in a bubble for the rest of your life." He smiled at her as he touched her still bruised face gently. "We can all live in a bubble together."_

" _I'll see if that can arranged. It would definitely be a fashion statement."_

" _I mean it Lorelai." He warned. "I don't want you to play the hero ever again."_

" _I'll be the villain from here on out." She joked. "I promise."_

" _That's all that I ask." He leaned back so that she could rest in his arms._

 _They both laid silently for a minute. Lorelai finally spoke up. "At least Christopher is going to pay for all of his mistakes. It is about time. Ten years probably isn't enough for all the pain and destruction he has caused."_

" _How did you know that?" They had all tried to keep it from her since she woke up. They weren't sure how she was going to take the news._

" _The news." She pointed to the tiny television. "And my dad mentioned it."_

" _I was going to tell you." He said quickly._

" _It's okay. It didn't really matter how I found out." She told him. "Do the kids know?"_

" _Rory and Ryan know."_

" _How am I going to tell Ruby about all of this? She will never understand."_

" _We can tell her together." Luke said, causing Lorelai to smile. "If that will help."_

" _I'm so happy that we have you now. I seriously don't how we ever did it without you or even how we got this lucky."_

" _I ask myself that same question every day." It was the truth. He was the lucky one. He kissed her forehead. "By the way, I punched Christopher after the accident."_

" _Now that I wish I could have seen." She held him close._

Lorelai was taken back to reality. She really was lucky to have such a caring, kind, and good man in her life. She would argue with Luke forever that she was the lucky one.

* * *

"Hey." Rory said as she joined her brother on the couch in the sitting room. "What are you doing?"

"Avoiding grandma." Ryan joked.

"She's out with Ruby." Rory informed him.

"Thank God." He pumped his fist. "She is driving me crazy."

"Yeah. Imagine how mom feels."

Ryan nodded. "Oh I know. She asks me to sneak her out of this place earlier. She even told me some of the best ways to get out of here." Ryan had taken a mental note just in case he ever needed to know.

"Sounds like mom." Rory sighed as she took a moment. "You know we need to talk to mom about everything. I feel like we have all been avoiding the topic."

"For good reason." He countered.

"Ryan." She shook her head. It was always so hard to get through to her brother. "We have to talk her about it. I feel really guilty."

"I know, Ror. I do too. But mom is recovering."

"She is going to be fine. Besides, we have to tell her what dad and grandpa did."

Ryan had finally told Rory what happened and how Christopher had signed over all of his parental rights.

"Don't you mean Christopher?" He said coldly.

"It all seems so weird to me."

"Well we really shouldn't be all that surprised."

"I don't think mom is going to be okay with this, especially not with grandpa's involvement."

"That's why I think we should wait to tell her." He smiled hopefully.

Rory poked him.

"Hey."

"Do you remember where that got us last time? I don't want to keep things from mom anymore, and you shouldn't either."

"I don't." He admitted.

"Then we are telling her. Right now." Rory stood up and helped her brother. "I'm glad that you see it my way."

* * *

A few minutes later, Ryan and Rory walked into their mother's room only to catch her trying to sneak out of the window, unsuccessfully. "Mom." Rory, who was carrying a cup of freshly brewed coffee, walked closer to her mom. "What exactly are you doing?"

Lorelai guiltily furrowed her brow. "Would you believe I was trying to clean the window?" She took her sleeve and pretended to wipe down the window.

Rory shook her head and set down the coffee. "You are supposed to be in bed."

Ryan couldn't stop laughing. "I thought you were supposed to be the master of sneaking out."

"I am." She sighed as she followed Rory to the bed. "Unfortunately this damn cast and half broken body are getting in the way." She sighed angrily. This recovering thing was beginning to drive her crazy.

"I wasn't talking about the window fail." He motioned. "Grandma and Grandpa aren't even here. You could have used the front door."

"Okay. Great." She pointed to the door. "Let's get out of here."

"Mom." Rory sighed. "You can't. you need to rest."

"I can rest in Stars Hollow." Lorelai pouted. "This was a big mistake."

"I agree." Ryan smiled. "I'm all for a jailbreak."

"Have I told you lately that you are my favorite?" Lorelai gave him a thumbs up.

"Hey." Rory groaned.

"Sorry hon."

Ryan smiled big. "I can't help it that I'm the best."

Rory playfully hit his shoulder.

"Get back in bed or else we'll never be able to leave." Rory warned her. "We will be stuck here forever. Grandma will take over your life."

"Good point." Lorelai laid back down and tried to make herself comfortable. She looked at both kids. She could tell that the kids were thinking about something. She had a feeling that she knew what it was.

"Come here." She patted the bed on both sides of her. "Both of you. Join me in my misery."

Both teenagers joined her on the bed.

"What's on your mind?" She asked.

Both Gilmores remained quiet. "Come on." Lorelai encouraged. "I created those faces."

Ryan nudged his sister. She had always been better in these types of situations. Rory gave him a pointed look. She didn't know where to start either.

"I know we need to talk about what happened and all of the secrets that were kept." Lorelai began.

"I wanted to tell you mom. I really did." Rory said frantically, cutting her mom off from any other thought she may have.

"But I stopped her." Ryan jumped in. "In her defense, it was all my fault anyways. Dad came to me. I should have told you immediately, but for some reason I didn't. So if you are mad at someone be mad at me. Punish me. I deserve it. Not Rory." He also spoke frantically.

"No I deserve it." Rory shook her head. "I'm just as guilty as Ryan. Maybe even more."

"No Ror. You aren't." Ryan looked at his sister. "Mom is in this mess because of me."

"You are always trying to protect me. You don't have to protect me from this." Rory argued.

"Rory, I'm just telling the truth."

"Hey guys." Lorelai knew she had to intervene. "Stop." She held out her hand. "Take a breath." She looked in-between them. "Both of you." She gave them both a gentle pat. "First of all, neither one of you is responsible for what happened to me. Okay. Unless you were driving the car that ran into me." She looked at them. "Were you driving?"

They both shook their heads. "Alright." Lorelai said. "I'm glad we got that cleared up. I don't want either one of you to feel guilty about what happened. Ever." She said sternly. "Second of all, the two of you weren't the only ones in this family keeping secrets. I am just as guilty as the two of you are. I knew that your father was in a lot of trouble, and I chose not to tell you. Hell, I didn't tell anyone." Lorelai sighed. That had not been one of her best moments. "I kept everything to myself. I was so stressed out about it and snapped at everyone for days. That wasn't the right way to handle things. I know that now."

Rory and Ryan nodded as they both listened to their mom talk about things.

"I think that is the important thing here. We learned from our mistakes. No matter how hard it might be, we can't keep things from one another. Okay." She wanted acknowledgement from both of them.

They both nodded, knowing they had to tell their mom the other news that they had about their dad, or now they guessed they were supposed to call him Christopher.

"Mom." Ryan tried to interrupt her.

"Let me finish." She stopped him. "Lastly, your dad made a lot of mistakes. It breaks my heart. He should have never asked you to lie to me." She looked at Ryan.

"That's what Luke said."

"He's a very smart man, that Luke." Lorelai smiled. "And he is right. This is on your dad, but he is going to have a lot of time to think about all of the bad decision and mistakes that he has made. I'm hoping that he takes this time to really reflect on his life and actually change."

"Mom." Rory was now trying to interrupt her.

"Not done." She held up her hand. "Even after all of the things he has done, he is still your father."

"Mom." Ryan said.

"I get that, and you can visit him when you are read." She told them. "Hell, you may even have a better relationship with him now. At least you'll always know where is." That had always been a problem before. "I never want to keep you from your dad."

"He is not our dad." Rory told their mom.

"I know he has done some bad things, and I may never be able to forgive him. But you guys—"

"No, mom." Ryan stopped her. "Seriously. Mom. He signed over his parental rights. He isn't our dad anymore."

"What are you talking about?" Lorelai was more confused than ever.

"I went to visit him but grandpa – "

"Your grandpa did this." Lorelai interrupted.

"We think so." Rory told her. "It doesn't change the fact that he signed them. That's on him."

"Yes it does." Lorelai stood up angrily.

"What are you doing?" Rory asked.

Lorelai walked over to her bag. "Packing our things."

"Mom you can't." Ryan tried to stop her.

"Yes I can. Your grandfather had no right to do what he did."

"But dad signed them." Ryan reminded her.

"Yeah. He has to live with that decision. But so does your grandfather." Lorelai shook her head trying to catch her breath. She had gotten up to quickly. "We aren't staying here. Get your stuff. Get Ruby's stuff."

They both nodded. Lorelai was furious. This was not her father's decision to make.

* * *

The kids got everything together, and Lorelai patiently waited for her father to return home.

Richard walked into the house, surprised to see his daughter sitting on the couch. "Lorelai." He gave her an odd look as he set his briefcase down. "What are you doing out of bed? Your mother will be very upset when she gets home." He moved closer to his daughter. "We need to get you back upstairs to your room."

"No." Lorelai shook her head. "That is not my room anymore. The kids and I are leaving." She stood up from the couch.

Richard shook his head and rolled his eyes. "That's absurd. You heard the doctor. You are in no shape to take care of yourself, let alone three children." He reminded her.

"I will manage." She said sharply. "I have a village of people willing to help."

"You would rather complete strangers help you than your own family." Her change in attitude made no sense to him.

"They aren't strangers. They are family." She informed him.

"What is going on with you?" Richard asked. "I thought things were going just fine."

"Why didn't you tell me what you did?"

Richard shook his head. He had forgotten how exhausting Lorelai could be. "What exactly do you think that I did?"

"You went to Christopher." She accused. "You had him sign over his parental rights."

"Yes. I did that." He wasn't going to lie about it. "It was for the best."

"You don't get to decide what is best for my children. You are not their parent. I am." She yelled causing the pain to shoot up to her head. "Ow." She sat down.

"Lorelai." Richard moved towards her. "Are you okay?"

"I'm just fine." Although, she thought it would be best if she remained sitting. "You need to understand that they are my kids."

"I do understand that." Richard said. He tried not to raise his voice. He knew that Lorelai was in no shape to fight. "You are absolutely right. I'm not their parent. However, I am your father, and I did this to protect you." He told her. "I don't want that man anywhere near you. I wanted him out of your life for good." Richard sighed. He knew that he had done the right thing. "We might not be so lucky next time. You might be willing to take that chance, but I'm not. I know we haven't always had the story book father-daughter relationship like most people, but I care about you Lorelai."

That statement took Lorelai by surprise. It was sweet.

"It is my job to protect you, no matter how old you may be."

"Dad." Lorelai said softly.

"No." He waved his hand. "No but dad here. I know that I should have consulted you first. I should have waited until you were awake. I was emotional. I couldn't wait. Honestly, I didn't wan you to try to talk me out of it."

"I never said I would have talked you out of it." Lorelai admitted. It was the truth.

"You wouldn't have?" He didn't believe her.

"Having that document doesn't change anything. Christopher has never really been a part of their lives. He was barely around, even when we were married."

"Then why are you so upset?" He asked, curiously.

"Well." She sighed. "I'm not as upset as I was before you started talking." A slight smile appeared across her face.

"Good. I haven't always had that effect on you." Richard also smiled.

"I'm still a little upset." She pointed. "I never wanted Christopher to sign his parental rights over unless it was something the kids wanted. It should have been their decision. Now, it is so official and it hurt them." She let him know. Richard felt remorse. He really did. "You didn't go about it the right way. I try my best to protect my kids too."

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize –"

"I know." Lorelai interrupted. "Now I have to tell Ruby. I never know how she is going to take things."

"I can help you."

"No." Lorelai shook her head and slowly stood up. "I already spoke with Luke. He's on his way. He is going to help me."

"You are still going to leave." He was surprised.

Lorelai nodded.

"I thought you said you weren't as upset anymore."

"I'm still leaving, but not because I'm mad or upset." Lorelai told him. "I'm leaving because if we are ever going to get back to normal and move forward with our lives, we need to be at home, following our routine. Stars Hollow is our home now." She really missed the town, and she knew that the kids did too. "I am thankful for everything that you and mom have done for us. You even drove me crazy like old times."

"Same." Richard smiled as he stood up.

"I've got to get back to my life."

"You mother is going to be so disappointed. She is going to blame me for this." Richard knew that would be the case. They had both enjoyed having Lorelai and the kids stay with them. It felt like old times.

"We don't have to tell her everything." Lorelai reassured her father. "We tell her that I'm homesick. Blame it on me. I can handle mom being mad at me."

"I've really enjoyed having you around." Richard walked closer to his daughter.

"I care about you too, dad." Lorelai said softly as she hugged her dad with her one good arm.

Richard looked down at her.

"We are okay, dad."

"I can't promise that it won't happen again." Richard informed her.

Lorelai knew that was true. She was familiar with the way the Gilmores worked. "I know." She nodded. "I can't promise that I won't get mad at you again."

"I know."

* * *

Soon after Lorelai's talk with her dad, Emily and Ruby arrived home. Emily wasn't happy with the news of their departure and even threatened to call the doctor. It was little Ruby who convinced her grandma that going back to Stars Hollow was for the best. The little girl admitted she was missing home and wanted to be reunited with all of her toys and friends. Emily had given in, with the promise that Lorelai would let Emily come to Stars Hollow to check on her a couple of times a week.

Luke had picked them all up, driving one of the vans from the Inn. Lorelai joked that it would have been a lot of fun trying to fit them all in his truck. She could have sat on his lap.

When they pulled up to her house, Lorelai felt a wave of emotions fill her body. Luke looked over at her as she sat in the passenger seat, completely frozen. "You okay." He reached over and found her hand.

Lorelai nodded. "I didn't realize how happy I would be to finally be home."

"This is where you belong." Luke squeezed her hand tightly.

"Come on mommy." Ruby jumped out of the van.

"Yeah come on mom." Ryan opened her door.

Lorelai looked over at Luke. "Right where I belong."

Ryan and Luke helped Lorelai out of the van, and Rory grabbed a few of their bags.

"I'm like an old lady." Lorelai said as the slowly walked to the house. "We may make it by Christmas."

"You've got it." Luke helped her up the stairs. "We are almost there."

Rory opened the door to see Sookie, Jackson, Davey, Mia, Michel, Babette, Jess, Lane, and Ms. Patty waiting on them with a huge sign that read "Welcome Home."

"Mommy look." Ruby said as she ran into the house.

Lorelai had tears in her eyes as the crew yelled welcome home. It was true. She was right where she needed to be. Luke gave her a kiss on the cheek. She was sure that he had planned the whole thing. He was too good to her. "I love you." She whispered.

"I love you more." He kissed her again.

She had finally found her happily ever after in the small town of Stars Hollow.

* * *

 **The End...For Now!**

 **Thank you so much for sticking with me! Let me know what you thought!**


	74. Their New Beginning

**Hey all! I know that you probably weren't expecting a chapter to be posted here. But after a review from Droolia, I decided to continue the story here. This is part 2 of the story.**

 **Thanks again for all the support! I can't thank you enough for sticking with this story.**

 **I hope you enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Part 2**

 **Chapter 2.1: Their Beginning**

7 Months Later

Luke opened the front door to Lorelai's house. Well…Technically it was now his house too. He and Jess had packed their things only a few short weeks ago, shortly after Christmas. They didn't have many belongings, so the move hadn't taken very long.

The move had actually been more of a change than Luke had thought it would be.

Before the move, they were already spending most of their free time at the house anyways. The move shouldn't have been a big deal. It wasn't that Luke didn't love being there. He was very happy to wake up next to Lorelai every single morning and go to bed next to her every night. It was the best way to start and end his day. If he were being honest, living with three teenagers and a seven year old was not an easy task, especially with the lack of space available. Luckily they had a plan. As soon as spring hit Stars Hollow, they were going to remodel the entire house because Lorelai didn't want to move. At first Luke didn't understand, but Lorelai tried her best to explain it to him.

The house had been the first purchase she had made without her parents or Christopher being involved. It had been the first place that had ever felt like home to her. She and Luke agreed to stay there and remodel. For Luke, spring couldn't get there quick enough.

The plan was to add a master bedroom and bathroom downstairs off of the kitchen. They were going to make Lorelai's room bigger for Jess and Ryan to share. Rory would move upstairs and Ruby would stay downstairs. They had also decided when they were able to save more money they would think about adding one more room to make as much space as possible. The remodel was already going to be pretty expensive, but Luke had savings, and he wanted to do it for their family. It was important to him that they all felt at home. It was their new beginning.

As he walked further into the house, he tripped over one of Ruby's toys. "Damn it." He mumbled. She was supposed to pick those up before she left for school. They had discussed it several times, and obviously she hadn't been listening to neither him nor Lorelai. As he rounded the corner, he tripped again. This time it was Ryan's basketball. "Ugh." He sighed heavily and kicked the ball under the side table. He had also had the same discussion with Ryan that same morning.

Ryan had decided to take up every sport possible. He had played soccer in the fall and was now playing basketball. He would have played hockey, but he wasn't a big fan of skating. He was going to play baseball in the spring. Lorelai thought he was overdoing it but decided to let him try as long as his grades didn't suffer. So far his grades weren't bad, and he seemed to be keeping it all together.

Luke finally made his way into the kitchen, frowning when he saw the dirty dishes on the table. "The sink." He mumbled. He was sure the dishes belonged to Jess and Rory. They had been in a hurry to catch the bus because they both had woken up late. He grabbed the dishes and moved them into the sink. He then glanced over at the fridge to look at the schedule. He hated Wednesdays. Lorelai had decided to go back to school to get her business degree. She was taking one night class a week at the community college in Hartford. Luke was being very supportive. He was happy for her. But Wednesdays were not fun. He was usually asleep by the time that she got home, and he hated that. He had early morning deliveries on Thursdays, and she had early morning meetings that same morning. Although she would try to make it to the diner before heading to the inn, it barely ever happened. He usually didn't see her until lunch or sometimes even later than that. But her getting a degree was very important, and Luke was going to be supportive. That didn't mean that he would like Wednesdays.

He opened the fridge and grabbed the chicken he had placed in that morning. He wanted to go ahead and cook the kids something more than just diner food. All they would have to do when they got home was put it in the oven. He had to hurry though before Ruby got out of school and the dinner rush started. Luke would pick Ruby and Davey up from school and take them back to the diner. Jackson would swing by and get Davey on his way home. This had been a new occurrence since Sookie had recently given birth to a beautiful baby girl, Martha.

Ryan would pick Ruby up at the diner after he got out of practice, and they would both go home. Ryan would hopefully start on his homework. That had been the deal. Jess and Rory usually didn't get home until close to five on Wednesdays. Rory had the paper after school and Jess liked to stay and study at the library so that she wouldn't have to ride the bus alone.

Luke had been most impressed with Jess. Even though Jess would never admit it, Chilton had been the best thing that had ever happened to him. It was exactly the kick in the ass that he needed. He was proud of his nephew.

Luke took a moment and sat down at the kitchen table. He was a very lucky man, but he couldn't help but think that it was all temporary. That's not what he wanted at all. Lorelai told him all the time how much she loved him, but he wished that she would have said yes. He knew he would feel better if she were wearing the ring he had tried to give her right before they moved in together.

He thought back to that night.

 _Luke had it all planned. He had even surprised himself. It was New Year's Eve weekend. Mia was staying with the kids while he and Lorelai were going to the cabin for the night. Lorelai thought they were going just to get away for a while. Truth was they hadn't really been anywhere without the kids since her accident. Lorelai's recovery had not been an easy one. She wasn't one for resting or listening, and this caused her to land herself back into the hospital due to an infection. She had been fine but had really caused the kids and Luke to stress out and worry about her well-being._

 _Emily on the other hand had not let her live it down. She was convinced that it never would have happened if Lorelai had stayed at the mansion with them. Lorelai rolled her eyes and quipped as any good daughter would. She assured her mother that Luke, Mia, and the kids were taking very good care of her, and that it was her fault for not resting like she should have._

 _She was really happy to have some time alone with Luke. Through everything, he had been her rock and her night and shining armor. As they walked into the cabin, Lorelai was surprised by the rose petals that were spread throughout the cabin. She noticed the trail that was leading to the bedroom. "Wow!" She exclaimed. "I think we are interrupting someone's special night." She turned to Luke, who was grinning. "Did you do this?" She was very surprised by the romantic gesture. This was not usually Luke's thing._

" _I hope so." The grin would not leave his face. It felt great to see her so surprised. "If not, I'm not going into that bedroom." He joked._

" _Oh well." She grabbed him gently by the collar. "I was thinking that was exactly where we could start." She pulled him into the bedroom, where there were more rose petals and champagne waiting for them. "Luuuke." She looked around the room in amazement. "When did you have time to do all of this?" She hit his chest playfully._

" _I came up earlier today." He told her. "It was not easy keeping it a secret from you."_

" _I can't believe you were able to do all of this." She smiled. "You sure do know how to make a girl feel special."_

" _You are special, Lorelai." He leaned in and kissed her. "Listen. The reason I brought you here was because I have something for you." This was not exactly how he had planned to do it, but the moment felt right._

" _Oh Luke. You already gave me plenty for Christmas." She paused. "Although, I can never say no to a good present."_

 _Luke fidgeted nervously causing Lorelai to notice._

" _Luke, babe, are you okay?"_

" _I um…Lorelai…" He couldn't believe how nervous he felt. He had this planned for weeks. It should be easy. He had practiced what he was going to say. Rory had even helped. It was all set. He was ready for this._

" _Luke, what is going on?" Lorelai smiled as she touched his shoulder. She wasn't sure that she had ever seen Luke so nervous._

" _I think we should get married." He blurted out quickly. It was not how he had rehearsed it._

" _What?" Lorelai was really surprised. Luke had never seemed like a person who would want to get married._

" _This isn't how I wanted to do it. I had this whole speech planned. We were going to drink champagne, which I hate, but I was told it was romantic."_

" _Who told you that?"_

" _Jess and Ryan. They got it from a book. So they said." He smiled. "I realize I shouldn't be taking advice from two sixteen year olds."_

" _Probably not." She shook her head, which was still reeling from Luke's declaration._

" _This is about us. Lorelai, I love you. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me. I know that I want to be with you for the rest of my life." He took her hands in his._

" _I want that too." She nodded._

 _Luke smiled happily as he reached for the ring that was safely tucked away in his pants pocket. He started to get down on one knee._

" _Wait." Lorelai stopped him. "Don't do that."_

" _This is the part that makes it official." He reminded her as he shook the box in his hand._

" _I know that." Her voice was shaky. She was at a loss for words._

" _Okay." He started to get down on one knee again._

" _Don't." She stopped him again._

" _Lorelai." Now he was even more nervous._

" _I love you so much, Luke." She pointed around the room. "All of this is amazing. I can't believe you did this. You never stop surprising me."_

" _I feel like you are about to tell me no." That was not the answer that he was expecting. He never thought that she would say no._

 _Lorelai shook her head. "It isn't a no to you."_

" _What does that mean?" He scowled._

" _I want to be with you. I know that I want you in my life forever."_

" _Okay." He was more confused than ever. "So you're saying yes?"_

 _Lorelai sighed. She was not handling this the right way. "I'm saying no to getting married. At least for right now."_

" _Oh." Luke was disappointed._

" _But I've been thinking a lot about us lately. I love you. I know that I am going to love you forever." Lorelai grabbed his hand. "Besides my kids you are the best thing that has ever happened to me." She hoped that he understood that. She really did love him. She could tell by the look on his face that he was still confused. "I think that we should move in together."_

" _What?"_

 _She was not helping his confusion. "Isn't that backwards?"_

 _Lorelai sighed and nodded. "Yes. But I'm not known to do anything the right way. Remember. Pregnant at sixteen."_

" _I…I…uh…don't understand. You want to move in together, but you don't want to get married. That doesn't make any sense to me."_

" _I don't expect it to. Listen, Luke. I've been married before, and it didn't go well. It was horrible."_

" _Our marriage wouldn't be that way." Luke reassured her._

" _I know that."_

" _I'm not Christopher." Luke explained._

" _I know that too."_

 _Luke shook his head. "Then what is going on. Why don't you want to marry me?"_

" _It's not that I don't want to marry you. It's that I don't want to be married again. At least not for now." Lorelai knew that it sounded crazy. "When I was sixteen, I didn't want to get married, and I shouldn't have gotten married. It was the biggest mistake of my life. For twelve years I was married and every single day I wished that I wasn't." She noticed the look on Luke's face. "I know that if we were to get married that it wouldn't be like that. I know that we would have the best life together. I want that, but I don't need a ring or some piece of paper to have that with you." Lorelai had tears in her eyes. "I know this isn't what you had planned, and I am so amazed by what you've done. You are amazing Luke."_

" _Yeah."_

" _You're mad."_

" _No." he shook his head. "I'm not mad."_

" _You're disappointed."_

" _I'm a little disappointed." He agreed._

 _She nodded. "I really think it would be great if we moved in together. You and Jess practically already live there anyways. You have been amazing with the kids. They love you, and I want you to be a bigger part of their lives. I'd love to wake up next to you every morning." She touched his face softly. "Fall asleep next to you every single night."_

" _Lorelai."_

" _I'm not saying no to marriage forever."_

" _I know." He held her hand. "I understand that you didn't have the best marriage. I hate that Christopher did that to you. I want to get married because I have seen what a good marriage looks like. My mom and dad showed me what it was like to love someone. I never thought that I would ever have that until I met you. Lorelai, I know without a doubt that I'm going to love you for the rest of my life. You are it for me. I don't need anyone else but you." He smiled. "You are right. This night did not go the way that I thought it would. I still want to get married, but I do understand what you have been through. I can wait. For as long as it takes, I can wait for you to be ready to get married again." He leaned in and kissed her. He was the most understanding man on the planet. "This isn't a no." He had the ring in his hand. "I'll hold on to this, and when you are ready it is yours."_

" _You're sure?" Lorelai smiled._

" _Yes. We don't have to be married to be together." Luke decided that waiting was a good idea. A lot of people moved in together before getting married._

" _So you want to move in together?"_

 _Luke nodded. "Yes. You are right. We practically live there anyway."_

" _Luke."_

" _I love you, Lorelai. That's all that matters." He squeezed her hand and kissed her cheek._

" _I love you too." She said softly. "I'm really sorry that I ruined this night."_

 _Luke shook his head and led her to the bed. "You didn't ruin this night. We are still together. That's the only thing that matters to me." He kissed her softly. "One day."_

 _Lorelai smiled. "I think the kids are going to be really excited that you and Jess are moving into the house."_

" _Yeah. Me too." Luke made a face._

" _What's with that face?"_

" _Nothing."_

" _Luke…" Lorelai said knowingly. "Do you know something that I don't?"_

" _The kids think we are going to come back to Stars Hollow engaged."_

" _Oh." Lorelai winced. "They are going to be mad at me."_

" _We can tell them that we agreed."_

" _Luke." Lorelai smiled. "They are not going to buy that."_

" _I know." Luke rubbed her shoulders. "I'm sorry that I told them."_

" _No. Don't apologize. This is on me." Lorelai felt bad for saying no, but she wasn't ready to get married again. She loved Luke, and she knew that she wanted to be with him for the rest of her life, but she didn't need the ring or license._

" _That doesn't matter. We are in this together." He kissed her neck. "I've got your back."_

" _Oh Luke Danes." She kissed him._

 _They both fell back on the bed. The weekend hadn't turned out so bad. They spent a lot of time in bed discussing the future. Their future._

 _When they got home, the kids and Mia were waiting at the house with a congratulatory banner. Luke felt bad, but Lorelai told him not to feel bad about any thing. She explained to the kids that she and Luke were going to wait to get engaged and get married, but were going to live together, if everyone was okay with it. They had all been pretty happy about it. Ruby was excited. Luke was one of her favorite people on the planet._

Luke was taken out of his thoughts when the front door opened. It was too early to be any one of the kids, unless someone was skipping.

"Luke."

He heard Lorelai's voice as she rounded the corner.

"What are you doing here?"

"I hate Wednesdays." She helped him up from his seat. "I had an unexpected break. I called the diner and Caesar said you ran home."

"Wanted to make sure the kids had something to eat."

"You are so domesticated." She kissed him quickly.

"Someone has to be." He joked. "I never see you on Wednesdays."

"I know." She kissed him again. "I hate that. I dread Wednesdays. You know I could drop out of school. I don't really need the degree."

"Not gonna happen. Your education is important." He kissed her. "How long do you have?"

"About thirty minutes or so."

"Perfect." He took her hand. "That's plenty of time."

"What about the dinner?"

"It can wait. We are going to have sex on a Wednesday." He told her.

"During the middle of the day." She laughed.

"That's the best kind."

"I hope we don't get caught." She giggled as they made their way up to their room.

This was the best Wednesday either one of them had had in a while.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	75. Pink Baby Smell

**Thanks for all the support on the last chapter! I'm glad most of you liked it! There are few lines I took from the show in this chapter. I thought they fit with the story pretty well.**

 **I hope you all enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2.2 Pink Baby Smell**

On Friday morning, Lorelai rolled over to find Luke still in bed, watching her sleep. "Hey." She said groggily but happily. "What time is it?"

"A little after seven." He pushed the lone strand out of her face and smiled.

"What are you still doing here? Don't you have to open the diner?" She pushed her body closer to his, happy to have him still in bed with her.

"I asked Caesar to open. I knew you didn't have to go in until later. I thought we could get the kids off to school and spend some time together." Luke said as he wrapped his arms around her.

"Really? You never do that."

"Nice surprise I guess." He kissed her forehead. "I figured this was our week for surprises. Especially after Wednesday. That was really…" He couldn't find the right word for their Wednesday afternoon escapades.

"Amazing." She found the word for him. "Really, really amazing." She giggled.

"Well we can have a really, really amazing morning." Luke went to kiss her.

She held up her hand. "Morning breath." She reminded him.

"I don't care." He kissed her passionately.

"What about the kids?"

"I checked on them earlier. Rory was getting Ruby ready and I'm not sure what the boys were doing. I told them that it was time to get up."

"Probably fighting." Lorelai mentioned. Jess and Ryan had been fighting ever since Jess and Luke moved in with them. They were supposed to be best friends, but for some reason they didn't make very good roommates.

"I don't want to talk about it. I'm tired of all the fighting. All I want to think about is you." He kissed her again.

"I like the way you think, Mr. Danes." Lorelai touched Luke's face. She smiled as he began kissing her again. This was the best way to wake up. She was so thankful that Luke was now living there. It made every morning better.

The two lovebirds continued to kiss until their make-out session was interrupted by the sound of their two teenage boys.

" _You're a jerk." Jess' voice carried into the room. "Keep your crap on your side of the room."_

" _Before you moved in this was my room." Ryan yelled back even louder than Jess. "I'm tired of you taking over everything."_

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Seriously. Can they not take a break, even in the morning?" Lorelai sat up in the bed.

" _I'm going to throw it out the window." Jess yelled._

"I'm getting really tired of all the fighting." Luke said sternly. "It really has to stop." He started to get out of bed.

" _I wish I could throw you out of the window."_

"I'll go." Lorelai told him. She could tell that he was mad, and she didn't want him yelling at the boys so early in the morning.

" _I like to see you try." Jess yelled back._

"You're going to let them get away with it." He knew it. Lorelai had really become a softy. Luke had a feeling it was because Lorelai didn't want to punish Jess. She wanted to make sure that Jess liked her, therefore, she was letting both boys get away with fighting all the time.

"Luke. It will be fine. They are just boys."

"Lorelai." He said as she walked out of the room, waving him off. He sighed and got out of bed. He hoped that she would handle it because if it didn't stop soon he was going to lose his mind.

" _Stop touching my stuff." Ryan yelled._

" _Stop leaving it on my side of this tiny ass room." Jess continued._

"Hey." Lorelai said sternly as she walked into the room. "What is going on in here? Half of Stars Hollow can hear you."

"We are fine." Ryan grunted as he sat on his bed to tie his shoe.

"Yeah we are fine." Jess agreed. He didn't want a lecture about fighting so early in the morning.

"Uh huh. That's not going to work this time." She informed them as she walked further into the room. "You two have really got to start getting along."

"Yeah." Ryan mumbled. "I can't get along with a jerk."

"You're the jerk." Jess snapped back.

"Hey." Lorelai stood in-between them. "Come on guys. What is going on? You two are best friends."

Ryan rolled his eyes.

"Ryan." Lorelai gave him a look.

Jess didn't want to talk about it.

"Is this about your breakup?" Lorelai asked Jess. He and Scarlett had broken up a few weeks ago. She was now dating one of Ryan's new friends from the basketball team.

Jess shook his head.

"Yes." Ryan answered for him. "He is being such a baby about it."

"You knew Scarlett was hanging out with Trevor, and you didn't tell me." Jess yelled.

"I didn't know they liked each other. It isn't my fault that she broke up with you." Ryan gave it back to him. "She probably didn't even breakup with you because of Trevor. You weren't a very good boyfriend. Ever since you started Chilton you've been MIA." It was the truth. Jess had really thrown himself into his studies at Chilton, and Ryan felt neglected as a friend.

"Okay. Listen. Guys you are best friends." Lorelai tried to reiterate that fact.

"Not anymore." Ryan said quickly.

"Feeling is mutual."

"Alright. Enough." Lorelai raised her voice. "This has got to stop. Understood." She looked at both boys, neither said anything. "Yes mom. Yes Lorelai. We understand." She mocks the boy. "Everyone now." She waves her hands in the air.

"I got it." Ryan said first.

"Yeah. Me too." Jess added.

"Great." She ruffled Ryan's hair and then did the same to Jess. "That's what I like to hear. You two better hurry up and finish getting ready." Lorelai told them as she walked out of the room.

Luke was standing in the doorframe to the room they now shared. "How did it go?"

"You were listening weren't you?" Lorelai was sure of it.

"It sounded like they both need a good swift kick in the ass."

"I handled it." She kissed his cheek forehead. "It has to do with Scarlett and Trevor and even Chilton. It is just going to take them some time to adjust to adjust to all of the changes they have gone through lately. It is going to be okay."

Luke wasn't sure he believed her.

"Luke." Ruby ran up the stairs.

"Hey baby girl." Lorelai greeted her.

"Mommy. I want Luke." She ran past her mom and into Luke's arm.

"Hey Ruby." Luke gave Lorelai a sympathetic look. This had been a common occurrence since Luke had moved in with them. Ruby wanted Luke and only Luke. Lorelai was sure that it had to do with Christopher. They explained to Ruby that she wouldn't be seeing Christopher anymore. They told her that he did something bad and was taking a timeout. Ruby didn't seem to mind. She told her mom and Luke that it was okay because she had the two of them, and she didn't need anyone else.

"Can you take me to school today?" Ruby asked.

Luke looked over at Lorelai.

"Ryan is going to take you, sweetie." Lorelai told her.

"But mommy." Ruby whined. "I want Luke to take meeee."

"Ruby." Lorelai sighed. "It is too early for whining." She really wanted to spend some time with Luke before they both had to go to work.

"Pleeeaaasssseee." She continued not listening to her mom. "I don't want to walk with Ryan. He is grumpy."

Luke gave Lorelai another look. He didn't like saying no to Ruby. Lorelai nodded, giving him permission to say yes. "Sure, Ruby. I will take you."

"Yay."

"But Ruby," Luke stopped her from running downstairs. "Whining is not the way to get your way."

Ruby gave him a cute smile and patted his shoulder. "Luke. That's funny."

"Why is it funny?" Luke asked.

"Because you are taking me to school." She gave him a kiss on the cheek and bounced down the stairs.

Luke looked at Lorelai, who couldn't stop smiling. "You can't tell her that whining doesn't work and then let her have whatever she wants."

"I don't let her have whatever she wants." He tried to make it sound better. He knew he was guilty of letting her get away with things, just like Lorelai did with the boys.

Lorelai hit his shoulder playfully. "Yes you do. Every single time. You are such a softy when it comes to her, and such a hard ass when it comes to the boys."

"That's not true."

"Luke." She gave him a look.

He didn't say anything.

"Go get dressed. Maybe I can sneak over to the diner for a quickie later."

Luke smiled, gave her a quick kiss, and walked back into their bedroom.

Lorelai made her way downstairs. She could still hear the boys bickering back and forth. She walked into the kitchen, where Rory was drinking a cup of coffee and gathering her books. She had way too many books. "Good morning, hon."

"Morning, mom." Rory smiled as she zipped her bag successfully.

"Wow. On the first try. I am impressed."

Rory shook her head. "Nope."

"It wasn't your first try."

"It wasn't even my second try." Rory laughed.

Lorelai smiled. "Oh babe, I hate to tell you, but you left out your history book."

"That was on purpose." Rory lied. "I wanted to carry in on the bus."

"Really?" Lorelai didn't believe her. Packing Rory's bag had become like a game for the whole family. Some mornings they would even take bets on how many attempts it would take her to get all of the books in the bag.

"Yes." Rory smiled. "I wanted to read the next chapter. Get a head start on things."

"Alright. Whatever you say." Lorelai grabbed a cup from the cabinet. "What are you doing ready so early?"

"Oh no reason."

"Rory. You are going to be at least thirty minutes early to that bus stop. Is it because there will be a tall, brunette boy waiting on you?" Lorelai knew her daughter all too well.

"That's a likely possibility." Rory smiled as she took one last sip of coffee and placed it in the sink. "We haven't seen each other for the last few days."

"Because of the big English test."

Rory nodded. "Yes. But it's over."

"And I am sure that you got an A. My brilliant daughter."

"Yeah." Rory tried to hide her worry. She didn't want her mom to know that she wasn't as brilliant as everyone thought she was. "I've got to go."

"Okay. Bye sweets."

"Bye mom." Rory grabbed her bag and headed to the door.

"Don't forget about Friday night dinner."

"I couldn't."

"I know. I've tried." Lorelai joked as she waved goodbye to Rory and walked into the girl's bedroom. "Are you almost ready, Ruby?"

Ruby nodded. "Yes. I'm just getting my dance costume. I have dance after school."

"I know. I put it in your dance bag last night."

"Thank you. You are the best mommy." Ruby gave her a hug.

Lorelai smiled. "I know." She patted herself on the back. Ruby hadn't told her that in a while. It was all about Luke all of the time. "I will pick you up from school and take you to Ms. Patty's studio." Lorelai explained to her little girl.

Ruby shook her head quickly. "I want Luke to take me."

Lorelai sighed. "I always take you to dancing." She told the little girl. Lorelai really enjoyed taking her to dancing. She was surprised that Ruby was actually so good at it. It was fun watching her dance and seeing her face light up as she did pirouettes.

"But I want Luke to take me."

"Luke has to work." Lorelai said quickly.

"He can take a break." Ruby argued.

"Ruby. I like taking you to dancing. It is our thing." Lorelai tried to explain to her. "It is our mommy daughter thing."

Ruby sighed heavily and dramatically. "Fine." She wasn't happy about but decided to let it go.

"Good." Lorelai kissed her forehead. "I promise that Luke will be front row center for your spring dance recital."

"He better." Ruby zipped her bag.

"He will. He would never miss it. Me either. We are going to be cheering the whole time." Lorelai waved her hands in the air. "Go Ruby Go."

Ruby shook her head and smiled at her silly mother. "You don't have to cheer the whole time."

"Yes I do."

Ruby shook her head. "I won't be dancing the whole time. You only have to cheer when I'm dancing."

"You are right." Lorelai smiled. "We don't want those other kids thinking that I'm cheering for them."

"Their mommy's and daddy's can cheer for them."

"That's right!" Lorelai exclaimed.

"Ruby." Luke said as he rounded the corner to her room. He was now dressed in his normal plaid attire. "Are you ready?"

"Yes." Ruby ran past her mom and into Luke's arms. "I'm ready."

"Alright."

"Hey Luke." Ruby looked back at her mom and then at Luke. "Can you come to my dance class today?"

Luke gave Lorelai a glance. She was shaking her head fiercely and mouthing the word no.

"Sorry, Ruby. Not today." He knew that was the right answer.

Ruby frowned and looked at her mom who was giving Luke a big thumbs up.

"I told you he would have to work." Lorelai shrugged, happy with herself for intervening. Lorelai wanted the two of them to have a relationship, but she also wasn't used to sharing her little girl.

"It's okay."

"Here is all of your stuff. Have a good day my Ru bear." She gave her one more kiss.

"Love you, mommy."

"Yeah me too." Luke smiled as he gave Lorelai a quick kiss.

" _Move." Ryan's voice echoed._

Luke gave Lorelai a look. She winced but motioned for him to stay put.

" _You move." Now Jess yelled._

" _I was here first."_

Luke gave Lorelai another look. She could tell by his face, he was getting really frustrated with the two boys.

" _I'm going to miss my bus."_

" _Who cares?"_

" _I care."_

"Mommy, the boys are being bad again." Ruby looked up at her mom.

" _Oh yeah because that school is so important to you."_

" _Well you wouldn't know. You aren't smart enough to attend."_

Lorelai gave Luke a nod. It was getting out of hand.

" _Take that back."_

The adults walked into the living room to see Jess and Ryan pushing each other back and forth.

"It's true."

"Jackass." Ryan shoved him again.

"Hey. That is enough." Luke yelled. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

The boys broke apart and stared at a mad Luke.

"I am tired of all of the fighting." Luke started. "You two are best friends."

"Yeah right." Jess rolled his eyes.

"We are not friends."

"Yes you are." Luke said sternly. "You have got to get over whatever this is. You live together. I can promise you that isn't going to change any time soon."

"Maybe he can stay at the diner."

"Good idea." Jess said quickly.

"No." Luke shook his head. "That is not happening. You two are going to drive me crazy if you don't stop fighting all of the time."

Both Jess and Ryan stared at each other.

Luke looked at Lorelai and then back at the kids. "You two are going to work at the diner after school today."

"What?" Ryan was surprised.

"No way." Jess chimed in. "Friday isn't my day."

"Mine either."

"I don't care. I know that neither one of you have any activities this afternoon."

"I have practice." Ryan lied.

"Nice try." Lorelai touched his shoulder. "I know that's a lie."

"You two are going to work together. I'm sure I will have plenty of things for you to stock this afternoon."

They both groaned.

"You brought this on yourselves." Luke told them as he turned to Ruby. "Ready?"

She nodded. "Yep. You two are in big trouble." She told the boys as she left the house with Luke.

Ryan looked at his mom. "You have to talk to him about this."

"You two have got to start getting along." She told both boys. "Working together will do you both some good."

Ryan sighed.

"I will see you tonight for Friday night dinner. We leave at six." Lorelai reminded him.

"Worse day ever."

"Don't remind me." She gave him a kiss on the head. "Have a good day. You too Jess."

"See ya, Lorelai."

Jess and Ryan walked out of the house. "No way in hell I'm working with you."

"Ditto." Jess agreed. He didn't want be anywhere near him.

* * *

In town, Dean and Rory were sitting at the bus stop. "I knew you were going to like it." Rory told Dean as she stared at the book he had given her.

"I didn't say that I liked it." Dean retorted.

"You totally liked Jane Austen. I knew that you would." Rory beamed.

"Now you have to read Hunter Thompson. It is a fair trade off."

"I'm just glad you liked Jane Austen." Rory gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Now you can read a little Charlotte Bronte?" Rory nodded her head quickly.

Dean gave her a look. "I'd rather just kiss you." He leaned in and kissed her.

"Rory." Lane said, trying to break the two love birds up. "Rory." She said again but no such luck. Finally she leaned over and gave Rory a tap.

"Oh hey Lane. I didn't see you there."

"Oh really. I couldn't tell." Lane said sarcastically.

"Hey Lane." Dean said. "Did you do that math homework?"

"Yep. All finished." Lane answered.

"Me too. It wasn't easy."

"Nope but I managed."

"Me too."

Lane felt like the third wheel. That seemed to be a common occurrence lately. She didn't see Rory very often, and when she did she was always with Dean. "Dean read Jane Austen." Rory said happily.

Lane nodded awkwardly. "Cool." She didn't really care. Rory didn't seem to notice.

"Next is Charlotte Bronte." Rory told Dean. Lane was still unamused.

"If I'm reading all the time, I won't be able to do this." He leaned over and kissed her, causing Lane to roll her eyes.

"Get a room." Jess said as he passed the two teenagers. "The bus is here." He mumbled as he loaded the bus.

"Awe." Rory frowned. "I thought we'd have more time."

"I'll be waiting for you." Dean told her with one more kiss.

"Rory. I really wanted to talk to you."

"Sorry Lane. We can talk later. Promise." Rory told her friend as she hopped on the bus.

Lane sighed. She was doubtful that would ever happen between Chilton and Dean, Lane had become a second thought.

Lane shook her head and walked towards the school where Ryan was waiting on her. "Hey Lane."

"Hey Ryan." They had become even closer since Rory and Jess had been at Chilton.

"Did you get to talk to Rory?" He asked. "You know in-between face sucks." He joked.

"Nope. She was too busy with Dean."

"Yeah. I get it." Ryan shook his head.

"I wanted to remind her not to say anything to your mom about the concert."

"My mom knows about the concert. Remember. She is driving us."

"Right." Lane nodded. "However, your mom doesn't know that my mom only said yes because she thought it was a religious band."

"Oh yeah. We lucked out on that one. It isn't every day a punk rock band is named the Godly's." Ryan smiled. "It is the perfect name."

"Right again. My mom never would have said that I could go with you tomorrow if she knew the truth."

"What does that have to do with my mom?" Ryan wondered. "She knows what kind of band it is."

"Right." Lane sighed. "But she doesn't know that my mom thinks that it is a religious concert."

"Oh yeah." Ryan finally understood where she was headed. "If my mom knew, she would definitely tell your mom."

"Yep."

"Mom code." Ryan added. "I get it. I'm sure Rory won't say anything."

"When will she have time?" Lane asked sarcastically. "She is way too busy making out with Dean."

"Yeah. It is really getting on my nerves. I don't have a problem with Dean, but I'm tired of all the lovey dovey crap." Ryan admitted. He hadn't dated anyone since Grace left town, and there weren't really in prospects on his radar.

"Agreed." Lane said. "I'll never have that. My mom would have all boys killed before I could ever experience lovey dovey with anyone."

Ryan nodded. "We don't need to focus on it anyways Lane. We have to focus on our band."

"True. But that is another thing my mom would be against." Lane sounded defeated. "Sorry. It is just one of those days. I need Lane/Rory time."

"What am I, chopped liver?" He joked.

Lane smiled. "You are a good Rory substitute." Lane was very happy to have Ryan in her life. She wished her mother liked him more, but at least she was letting her go to a concert with him. That was a first and possibly last. "I've got to go to the library before class starts. I'll see you in history." Lane told him.

"See ya." Ryan walked to his locker and was greeted by his new friends Trevor and Daniel. Even Ryan had to admit that Trevor was kind of jerk, but both boys had taken Ryan into their group. He had felt lonely, so it was nice to have some friends, other than Lane and even Dean, he guessed. "Hey guys."

"Man, we are hanging out after school." Trevor told him.

"Yeah. Trevor's girl has plans." Daniel added.

Trevor was dating Scarlet. Jess's Scarlet. Jess blamed Ryan, but honestly he had no idea that Scarlet was cheating on Jess with Trevor. He wasn't all that observant sometimes.

"I can't." Ryan hated to admit.

"Of course you can." Trevor pressured. "We already know that you don't have to be in Hartford until seven."

"I have to work."

"You don't work on Fridays." Daniel remembered.

Ryan nodded. "Well Luke got pissed at me and Jess this morning. Wants me to work in the diner today."

"Bail." Trevor said simply.

"Yeah. What is he going to do about it? He isn't your dad." Daniel added.

"I don't know guys." Ryan didn't want to work, especially with Jess, but he didn't want to piss Luke off. "Luke would be pretty mad at me if I didn't go."

"Seriously. I thought you were more badass than that." Trevor pressured.

"I guess so." Ryan really was conflicted. "I guess we could hangout for a little while. I could always go late."

"That sounds more like it Gilmore." Trevor said, pleased with the outcome of the conversation.

Ryan shut his locker. Luke wouldn't be too mad at him.

* * *

"You and Ryan really need to get over it." Rory told Jess as they walked into Chilton.

"I'm over it." Jess mumbled.

"You don't seem over it." Rory poked him. "I hate when you two fight. It is weird and very unproductive."

Jess rolled his eyes. He didn't need a Rory lecture.

"Mariano."

Jess looked up to see Paris standing at the end of the hallway.

"It is too early in the morning for her to yell my name." Jess said.

Rory smiled. "What could you have done?"

"Who knows with Paris?"

"Mariano." She bellowed again.

"I'm going to my locker." Rory told him. "Have fun." She gave him a sympathetic push towards Paris and headed towards her locker.

Paris met Jess half way. "So what do you have to say for yourself?"

Jess just stared at her. Unsure of what could possibly be the problem. "You look nice Paris. Red is definitely your color. Makes you look like the devil."

"That wasn't funny the first time you said it." She rolled her eyes. "Obviously you aren't smart enough to tell new jokes. It is a shame that you are already recycling your crappy little witticisms."

"It depends on your definition of crappy." Jess said snidely.

"You know it is too early for this." Paris told him.

"Agreed." Jess started to walk by her.

"Wait a minute. We are not done here."

"You just said that it was too early for this."

"Ugh. For you. Not me." She handed him a piece of paper. "Do you see this load of crap you tried to pass off as a lab report?"

"There is nothing wrong with that lab report." Jess informed her. "It is a decent report."

"I'm not looking for decent. If you are going to be my partner, you are going to have to strive for a little more than subpar."

Jess shook his head. "I don't have time for this." He walked by her, but of course she followed.

"After school we are going to fix this report."

"I can't." Jess told her.

"Oh yes you can."

"I have to work."

"Not anymore or else I'll tell Mr. Barry that you are too busy for his class maybe he should think about moving you to something a little easier."

"I don't need anything that is easier, Paris. I have better grades than you do." Jess felt like he sounded so petty, but it was the truth. He really was doing well at Chilton. Better than even he had expected.

"I'll see you in the library after school." Paris told him as she walked off.

Jess sighed. Of course. He knew his Uncle Luke was going to kill him.

* * *

Lorelai held baby Martha. "Sookie she is absolutely perfect." Lorelai couldn't stop smiling at the little beauty. "I remember when Ruby was this little. She was the most beautiful pink all over. She even smelled pink. Just like this." She smelled Martha. "It is the most perfect smell."

"You just smelled my baby." Sookie was sitting on the couch, thankful for a moment to herself.

"Guilty." Lorelai was lost in baby Martha's eyes. "I wish Ruby was still this little. I feel like she is growing up way too fast."

"You're just upset because she is still choosing Luke over you." Sookie had heard the stories several times.

"I'm not upset." Lorelai said quickly. "Really. I am glad that she likes Luke so much."

"But." Sookie gave her a knowing look.

Lorelai sighed. Sookie knew her to well. "But it is a little weird." She admitted. "I'm supposed to give her a bath, tuck her in at night, and feed her a pop tart." Lorelai sighed still focused on baby Martha. "She supposed to want me."

"Lorelai. I think you are a little jealous." Sookie told her.

"I'm not jealous."

Martha cooed.

"She agrees with me." Sookie smiled. "It's okay. This is all so new for you. Moving in together is a big step."

"Yeah."

"You have to get used to it. You all do."

"Right." Lorelai knew she was right.

"And then there is marriage."

"Oh don't start." Lorelai gave her a look. "I know that you think I was crazy for saying no to Luke's proposal."

"I don't think you are crazy." Sookie explained. "I think you are scared."

"I'm not scared." Lorelai said quickly. "I'm not."

"A little." Sookie held out her thumb and index finger. "You are."

Lorelai sighed. "I don't have to get married to know that Luke loves me."

"I know." Sookie gave her another look.

"Sookie."

"Luke is not Christopher."

"I know that."

Martha continued to coo.

"I didn't say no because I thought it would end badly. I only want to be with Luke. I just need more time."

Sookie nodded. "I get that."

"But you still have to give me a hard time about it?"

Sookie nodded. "Yep. I do it because I care."

"Thanks." Lorelai smiled. "I think." Lorelai looked down at baby Martha. "You are just the cutest thing in the whole world."

Sookie stared at her best friend and daughter. Lorelai looked up at her. "What?"

"Maybe you and Luke can have Martha a baby friend."

Lorelai shook her head. "No. I'm pretty sure I am done having kids. Three is more than enough. Plus there is Jess. He is like Luke's son."

"But what about Luke. He may want a child of his own."

Lorelai nodded. "I know. I've thought about that."

All of the sudden, it hit Sookie. "That's why you wanted to wait to get married."

"What?" Lorelai looked at her bashfully, trying to play it off but failing miserably. "No. That's not it."

"Lorelai. Come on."

She sighed. "It did cross my mind."

"You don't want a baby?" Sookie asked her.

"I mean they are so cute and perfect and I could bathe in this pink smell." Lorelai smiled as she looked at Martha and then back at Sookie. "But I've been a mom since I was sixteen. I'm perfectly content with what I have." She was quiet for a moment. "Rachel told me that Luke wanted kids with me."

"Maybe you should tell him."

"It hasn't come up yet. Not really." Lorelai knew that she needed to talk to him about it. "I'll talk to him."

"You don't want him to be stuck." Sookie finally understood Lorelai's hesitation.

"No. I don't."

"Well you can borrow Martha anytime."

"I might take you up on that. Just to smell her."

"That's weird." Sookie chuckled.

"But she just smells so good." Lorelai held the little baby tight. It was nice to hold a baby. It did bring her back to when each of her children were small, but no matter how cute Martha was, Lorelai didn't think that she would change her mind about more kids.

* * *

That afternoon, Luke waited patiently for the boys to show up, but neither one of them ever did. He was not very happy about it.

* * *

 **Alright let me know what you thought!**


	76. The Duck is Chicken

**Oh my! I am so sorry that it has been over three weeks since I have posted. My real job has been keeping me busy. I hope with the holidays I will have time to get ahead and post regularly. This is a longer chapter.**

 **I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2.3: The Duck is Chicken**

"Luke," Lorelai said calmly. "I think you need to take a minute and relax."

Luke stopped pacing the floor. "I don't know how you can be so calm. Both of the boys deliberately disobeyed me." He was furious. He had called Lorelai at the Inn after neither boy showed up at the diner. He was a little frustrated that she wasn't more concerned about the matter.

"Luke, hon." Lorelai gave him a sympathetic look. "It's okay. I'm sure they just forgot."

"Lorelai." Luke rolled his eyes and began pacing the floor again. "Come on. You know they didn't forget."

"Luke they are sixteen." She said matter-of-factly.

Luke sighed and stopped pacing again. "That seems to be your excuse for everything they do lately." Luke snapped. He felt like they were never on the same page when it came to the kids. "They screwed up."

"I get why you are upset." She touched his shoulder. "But before you lose your cool, you need to stay calm and listen to their explanations. Hear them out."

Luke sighed. He was mad. He didn't want to listen to her. "I don't like to be duped."

"Well technically they didn't dupe you." Lorelai gave him a look. She could tell by his eye roll that he didn't like her comment. She was hoping a joke would make the situation better.

"You are taking their side." That's how Luke felt. He also knew that he sounded like a child, and that he shouldn't be mad at Lorelai. He needed to save all of his frustration for the two boys.

"I'm not taking anyone's side. There should be no sides." Lorelai defended. "I just don't think it is a good idea to yell at them as soon as they walk into the house."

"I'm not going to yell." Luke said calmly.

"Luke." Lorelai could see right through his fake calm face.

"I promise I won't yell." Luke gave a slight smile. Lorelai still wasn't convinced.

She squeezed his hand tightly. "You should look on the bright side."

"What is that?"

"They did something together."

Luke gave her a look. It was clear he was not amused.

* * *

Outside the house, Ryan had been watching Luke's mini breakdown. He figured it wasn't going to bode well for him.

"What are you doing out here?"

Ryan jumped as he heard Rory's voice. "Rory. Damn. Wear a bell."

"I'm guessing you didn't go to the diner either." Jess said as he walked onto the porch.

Ryan didn't say anything.

"Luke looks mad." Rory pointed at the window.

"Are you afraid to go in?" Jess asked Ryan.

"No. I'm not." Ryan lied.

"You guys need to grow up." Rory told them. "Seriously. We all know that you are going to make up eventually. Just go ahead and do it already.

Jess and Ryan stared at each other. Neither one willing to make the first move.

"Whatever." Rory walked into the house.

Ryan and Jess could hear her being greeted by Luke and Lorelai. Ryan heard his mom mention Friday night dinner and that Ruby was playing at Babette's. Luke asked about the boys. They could hear Rory's response, but they realized she probably pointed to the front door, when Luke appeared in front of them. He didn't have to say anything. The look on his face said it all. Both boys followed the mad adult into the house.

"Luke." Ryan started first. "Before you say anything, I'd like to say that I'm sorry for not showing up today. We had a surprise mandatory practice." He lied. He did play basketball with the guys but it wasn't a practice, and it wasn't mandatory.

"Really?" Luke folded his arms.

"Yes." Ryan had a feeling that Luke was on to him.

"That's funny because I called your coach." Luke informed him.

"You did." Lorelai was surprised.

"Seriously." Ryan grunted.

"Yes. So I know that you are lying." Luke was one step ahead of him.

"Where were you, kid?" Lorelai chimed in.

"Shooting hoops with the guys." Ryan told her. "I wasn't lying about that."

Jess snorted.

Ryan glanced at Jess. "Shut up." He looked at his mom. "It just wasn't mandatory."

Jess couldn't help but laugh. "I'm sorry. I can't hold in my laughter when I hear someone say with the guys like it is supposed to be cool."

"Well you wouldn't know."

"Thank God." Jess snapped back.

"Enough." Luke broke up yet another meaningless fight. "I can't take it anymore." He turned his attention to his nephew. "Jess, don't even think about lying. I don't want to hear it."

"Luke." Lorelai touched his shoulder to calm him.

"No. Lorelai. This has to stop. We are the parents here."

Lorelai didn't mean to roll her eyes at that statement, but it reminded her so much of her mother.

"No more fighting. No more lying." He told them. "You two are grounded." Luke said firmly.

"Uncle Luke."

"Luke." Lorelai said. They hadn't discussed it. She felt blindsided.

"You can't do that." Ryan stated.

"We have warned you a thousand times." Luke explained. "I'm tired of it."

"I have a concert with Lane tomorrow night." Ryan could not miss that concert. They had been planning it for weeks.

"You aren't going." Luke said simply.

"I have to go." He looked at his mom.

Lorelai didn't want to go against Luke, but she understood how Ryan felt.

"Mom."

Lorelai didn't say anything.

"You and Jess are going to spend the day in your room tomorrow. You'll either become friends again or kill each other." Luke told them.

"Luke." Lorelai said softly.

"I've got to get back to the diner. Jess you are coming with me."

Jess groaned.

"No complaints." He turned towards Lorelai. "I'll see you tonight. Have fun with your parents." He gave her a kiss. He was obviously unaware of how he had made her feel.

"We'll try." Lorelai sighed.

Ryan turned to his mom as Jess and Luke left. "Mom, you have to talk him out of this."

"Ryan." Lorelai shook her head. "I don't want to talk about this. We need to get ready for dinner."

"Mom. He can't ground me."

"Ryan." Lorelai didn't know what to say.

"If I am grounded does that mean I can get out of Friday night dinner?" Ryan raised an eyebrow, hopeful. Although, knowing she was going to say no.

"Not a chance." Lorelai touched his shoulder. "Go get ready."

"Mom. Mom. Mom." Ryan kept saying as she walked upstairs to change.

Luke really should have talked to her before punishing the boys. It should have been something they discussed. They were supposed to be in this together.

Ryan sighed. He would have to talk her into it somehow.

* * *

Luke and Jess were in his truck riding to the diner. It was too cold to walk. Both were very quiet. Which wasn't unusual for either one of them.

Luke pulled up to the diner. Jess reached for the handle.

"Wait." Luke said before turning off the truck.

Jess sighed and moved his hand away from the door handle. He turned his head towards his uncle.

"You want to tell me what is going on with you?" Luke asked calmly.

Jess shrugged.

"No. A shrug is not going to work this time." Luke informed him. "You have been like this for weeks. It can't just be the Scarlet thing."

"She was my girlfriend." Jess mumbled.

"I know that." Luke sighed and shifted in his seat. "I understand that it upset you, but even you said that the two of you had been drifting apart."

Jess didn't respond.

"Come on, Jess. I can't help you if you won't talk to me." Luke hoped he would open up to him.

Jess shrugged again.

"Jess."

"You grounded me but that doesn't mean that I have to talk to you." Jess told him.

"Jess."

"Can we go in now?" Jess asked.

Luke turned off the truck, and Jess took that as a yes. The boy got out of the truck and Luke followed.

"Oh Luke there you are." Kirk greeted Luke at the entrance of the diner.

"Not today, Kirk." Luke said quickly as he walked by the man and into the diner. He was in no mood for Kirk's antics.

* * *

The trip to Hartford had been longer than usual, especially for the girls. They had never been happier to see the Gilmore mansion. "Mom." Ryan continued as they walked up the driveway to the door.

Lorelai sighed heavily. "Ryan. You are driving me crazy. Not a normal kind of crazy."

"Mom. I have to go to the concert." Ryan said. Lorelai should have been keeping count of how many times he had uttered those words. "Please. Mom. You have got to listen to me."

"Ugh." Rory sighed heavily. "She has listened to you. We have all listened to you the entire way here." She said frustratingly.

"You are a like a broken record." Ruby added.

Lorelai pointed. "The little one has a point." She turned to her son. "Ryan, I know you are upset, but you messed up."

"Oh come on." Ryan groaned. "I barely did anything wrong."

"Well Luke feels like you did." Lorelai told him.

"Exactly." Ryan felt he had caught her. "Luke." He pointed out. "Not you. You never would have punished me for fighting with Jess or skipping one day at the diner. This is all Luke."

"Ryan." Lorelai sighed, technically he was right, but she couldn't tell him that.

"He didn't even talk to you about it."

"Ryan." Lorelai repeated.

"Can I knock?" Ruby interrupted with her hands on her hips. "This is seriously stressing me out."

"Me too, Rubear." Rory agreed with her little sister.

"You two go ahead." She motioned towards the door and then led Ryan away from the door.

"You know that I'm right." He continued to argue with her, beginning to give her a headache.

"Ryan."

"Could you at least talk to him about the concert? Please. Lane never gets to go. We've been planning for this forever. It costs you money." He reminded her.

"You can reimburse me."

"Mom." Ryan rolled his eyes.

Lorelai sighed. "I will talk to Luke."

"Seriously." Ryan smiled.

"You are still grounded." Lorelai reminded him. "But maybe I can convince Luke to let you go to the concert."

"Yes. You are the best." Ryan hugged his mom.

"Hey. I'm not promising you anything." Lorelai informed him. "You have to promise me that you'll withstand from hating me tonight. I don't need another reason for your grandparents to chastise me about Luke."

"They weren't too happy about the non-engagement." Ryan remembered.

Lorelai rolled her eyes at the thought. "I still can't believe Luke asked my dad's permission."

"He's traditional that guy." Ryan laughed as they walked to the door.

"Yes well maybe they have forgotten." Lorelai knew that wouldn't be true.

"Yeah right. They will be reminding you as they put you in the ground." Ryan teased.

"That might be sooner than I hope if you don't start getting along with Jess."

"Oh mom." Ryan groaned. "I don't need another lecture."

"I'm not lecturing. But it is a problem. You two have got to figure it out." She pointed.

"I'll figure it out at the concert." Ryan smiled.

"Lorelai. Ryan." The two were greeted by Emily as they reached the door. "What on earth are you two still doing out here?"

"Hoping to turn in to snowmen." Lorelai joked, causing Ryan to snort.

"Lorelai get inside. You are going to get poor Ryan sick." She pulled Ryan into the house.

"Yeah mom."

Lorelai glanced at him.

"What was going on out there?" Emily asked.

"Nothing Grandma." Ryan lied. Lorelai was glad. She wasn't in the mood to hear about her parenting skills.

Emily looked around Lorelai and Ryan as if she were expecting someone else.

"What is it mom?" Lorelai already knew what she was going to say.

"Where are Luke and Jerry?" Emily asked.

Lorelai shook her head. "Jess. Jess is Luke's nephew. I'm not sure who Jerry is."

"Oh well. I was close." Emily stated. "Where are they?"

"They are working. And Jerry and Jess aren't all that close." Lorelai answered as the three walked into the den. She smiled as she saw Ruby sitting in Richard's lap. It always amazed her that her parents were good grandparents. They had always been so loving when it came to the kids. Unfortunately, they had never shown her the same courtesy.

"Lorelai." Richard stopped talking to the girls and focused his attention on Lorelai. "I was beginning to think you had made the girls walk here."

"I made them walk and drove beside them, mocking them the entire way." Lorelai joked.

Richard was unamused. "Where is Luke?"

Lorelai dropped her head. "Working." She answered quickly.

"How come he is always working on Friday night? Doesn't he own that little diner? Can't he take off?" Richard asked.

"Which question should I answer first?" Lorelai mocked.

"Lorelai, your father's questions aren't unfair." Emily explained. "You are our daughter. Is it so wrong that we would take an interest in your life?"

"I need a drink." Lorelai made her way to the drink cart.

"Me too." Ryan joked as he sat next to his twin. "Something strong."

"A coke for you." Lorelai poured her son a drink.

"I don't understand why Luke can never join us for dinner. We barely know the man." Richard wondered.

"You don't need to know the man."

"He is shacking up with our daughter and grandchildren. I think we have every right to know the man." Emily snapped.

Rory covered Ruby's ears. Ruby laughed.

"Oh God." Lorelai winced. "Mom. Never. Ever use the word "shacking" up." Lorelai winced again as she handed Ryan his drink and grabbed her drink off the cart.

"What does that mean, mommy?" Ruby asked, obliviously.

"Nothing sweetie."

"Are you and Luke shacking up?" Ruby asked again.

"Thanks, mom." Lorelai shot her mother a look. "It means living together, Ruby, but there is no need for you to repeat it okay."

"Okay. So it is kind of like when Ryan said the word ass and told me that it was the same thing as butt and should not be repeated."

Ryan was now the one wincing. "Ruby."

"Oh. Oops." She noticed the look on her mom's face. "Sorry."

"Ryan." Lorelai gave him a look.

"Ass is a donkey, mom. Get your mind out of the gutter."

"Ms. Gilmore." The maid appeared in the doorway. "Dinner is ready."

"Thank you, Alba."

"I thought your maid's name was Mary." Ruby said.

"She was the maid last week, Ruby." Emily answered. "She was the most incompetent one we have had."

Ruby shook her head. "Grandma, you said that the last time." She said as she skipped to the table.

"Out of the mouth of babes." Lorelai said to Rory and Ryan as they followed her parents to the dining room. Dinner could not end quickly enough for Lorelai.

* * *

Jess was busy working and trying to avoid his uncle. He really wasn't interested in any type of lecture or talk. He was over it all.

"Jess."

He heard his name. No. He thought to himself. The voice sounded a lot like Paris. It couldn't be Paris. Why would she be in Stars Hollow?

"Jess. God, you are so dumb you don't even know your own name."

Jess dropped his head. It was definitely Paris. No one else he knew could ever be that crass. He finally turned around to see the girl standing with her arms crossed. "Paris."

"Finally. I thought you had gone deaf."

"I wish." Jess mumbled.

"What was that?"

"Nothing." Jess shrugged. "What are you doing here, Paris?" Jess asked as he grabbed his rag off the table and walked towards the counter.

Of course she followed him to the counter. "I had an aching to see the tiniest most nauseating town in America."

"Right." Jess rolled his eyes. He really wasn't in the mood for anything that Paris had to say. She was the reason he would be spending his Saturday in the confines of Lorelai's home. "I thought we made all of the corrections we needed to make earlier."

"You made another mistake. Of course." She said with an eye roll.

"Me. We were working together the whole afternoon."

"Is that true?"

Jess heard his uncle's voice from behind him. Jess turned around.

"Were you working on schoolwork today?" Luke asked again.

Jess still didn't answer.

"Yes we were." Paris answered. "Your nephew can't seem to get anything right."

"Why didn't you tell me that?" Luke asked Jess.

"You didn't ask." Jess said smugly.

"Jess." Luke didn't know what to think.

"Um excuse me before you get into some kind of domestic dispute, I need Jess' help on this report. It is due Monday and I don't want to spend my entire weekend stressing over it. I have more important things to do than continuously correct his mistakes." Paris rambled on.

"We are going to talk after she leaves." Luke warned his nephew.

"Looking forward to it." Jess told his uncle, as Luke made his way to one of his customers. "Now Paris. What did I do wrong?"

"Here. See." She handed him the piece of paper. "Right there. Do you see what you did?"

"This sentence looks fine." Jess sighed. "Makes perfect sense."

"But you left off the period." She said sincerely.

"You're kidding, right. You didn't seriously drive all the way to Stars Hollow to tell me that I left off a period. You know you can add the period. It isn't that difficult."

"But it was your mistake. I shouldn't have to fix your mistake."

"Paris. Seriously. You are driving me crazy." Jess yelled. "I'm tired of dealing with your shit. You are so damn annoying." He continued to let her have it, everything in his brain boiling over.

"Jess." Luke walked out of this kitchen after hearing his nephew's tirade.

"If you aren't happy with the work that I do, then I suggest you find a new lab partner." He told her firmly, ignoring his uncle.

"I just want us to have the best report. You don't have to be such an ass about it." Paris was taken aback by his outburst.

"I'm doing the best I can." He told her. "Just get over yourself." He stormed off and out of the diner, refusing to stop at the sound of his uncle's voices.

Luke looked over at Paris. "I'm sorry. I don't know what has gotten into him lately."

"I didn't mean to make him mad. That's not why I came here." Paris told the man. She sighed. "I should go. I'm sorry I bothered you." Paris walked out of the diner.

Luke stared at the door. He knew he was going to have to find Jess, and they were going to have to have a talk. He just hoped that Jess would actually open up to him about whatever was bothering him.

* * *

Back at the Gilmore mansion, the crew was finished with dinner. Lorelai was ready to wrangle her brood and head home. "Alright guys, lets peace out of this joint."

"Lorelai. Really." Emily chastised.

"It was a delicious dinner mom."

"Yeah grandma. The duck was delicious." Rory added as they all started to walk towards the door.

"Wait." Ruby stopped, everyone turning towards her. "I thought we were eating chicken."

"Nope. It was definitely duck." Ryan told his little sister.

"No." Ruby shook her head and then looked up at her grandmother. "Grandma, you can't feed us duck. You killed daffy." She said dramatically with her hands on her hips. "I can't believe you killed daffy."

Emily looked at her granddaughter with confusion. "Daffy?" She questioned.

"Daffy Duck." Lorelai told her mother as if she were just supposed to know. "Hon." She looked down at Ruby.

"I think I am going to be sick." Ruby put her hand over her mouth.

"Oh sweetie. Grandma didn't kill Daffy Duck."

"Well there is also Daisy and Donald and even Huey, Lewey, and Dewey. Oh my goodness." Ruby had tears in her eyes.

"Lorelai, what is she going on about?" Richard asked, remembering Lorelai as a child and her many outbursts over absolutely nothing.

"Cartoon characters." Ryan answered with a laugh. "Grandma fed us cartoon characters." He joked.

"Ryan." Lorelai gave her son a glare.

"I did not. Ruby, I promise." Emily said frantically, hoping to calm Ruby. "My duck was actually chicken."

"Wow." Lorelai whispered. "Lying to the child." She said with a smile.

"Yes." Richard added. "That's right. We don't like duck in this household. Never eat it. No need to worry about all your little friends." He reassured the little girl.

"Mommy." Ruby looked up at her mother.

"I promise Daffy, Daisy, Donald, Huey, Lewey, and Dewey are all perfectly fine. We can even watch them in the morning with all your other favorite Saturday morning cartoons."

"Okay." Ruby seemed to be okay with that answer.

"Alright you three. Tell your grandparents goodbye. We will see them next week." Lorelai looked at her mother. "Nice save on the duck."

"Never again." Emily told her. "I never knew how upset it would make her. We've eaten duck before."

"But we didn't tell her that it was duck." Lorelai reminded her.

"Never again." Emily repeated.

Hugs were given. Goodbyes were said. Lorelai and the kids walked outside and all started smiling. "Good job kid." She told Ruby, who was smiling from ear to ear. "Forget dancing. I think I'm going to put you in acting class."

"Yeah. I think that's a good idea." Rory told her sister. "You were fantastic. I didn't know you would be able to cry on cue like that."

Ryan picked up his little sister. "I can't believe it actually worked. I'm impressed."

"At least we don't have to eat duck ever again."

"I'm glad I could help." Ruby was very proud of herself.

"You know you are teaching her to be manipulative." Ryan warned his mom.

"Shh." Lorelai put her finger to her lips.

"It is okay, Ryan." Ruby smiled at her brother. "Mommy says I can be manipuwative only to grandma."

Ryan gave his mom a look.

"I don't see anything wrong with that." Lorelai shrugged and then looked at Ruby. "It's only okay if we all do it together."

"I'm gonna remember that." Ryan smirked.

"Come on. Let's go." Lorelai laughed. Maybe she shouldn't have let Ruby trick her grandmother, but it was funny to watch. At least they wouldn't have to eat duck anymore.

* * *

Jess was sitting on the bridge, throwing rocks into the water. He still couldn't believe Paris drove all the way to Stars Hollow because of a stupid punctuation mark. She really was out of her mind.

"Jess." Luke hiked up the way and sat beside his nephew.

Jess sighed. He should have known that his uncle was going to find him.

"What happened back there?"

"She is crazy." Jess said simply.

"Jess." Luke said with a sigh. "That doesn't answer my question. You really lost your cool back at the diner."

Jess didn't say anything.

"Come on. You've got to talk to me. I'm worried about you."

"Nothing to worry about." Jess said quickly. "I'm fine."

"You are not fine." Luke told him. "You've been acting a lot like you did when you first got here."

Jess gave his uncle a look. "What's wrong with that?"

"Jess. You had a hard time when you first got here. You know that. Things have gotten a lot better."

"So says you." Jess knew he sounded like a jerk, but at the moment he didn't care.

"And you too." Luke added. "You know that you are doing better. You are going to a great school. You are killing it."

"Yeah." Jess grumped as he stood up. "I liked the old Jess. I'm sorry that you didn't."

"Hey." Luke stood up. "I love you, Jess. I want the best for you."

Jess shrugged.

"You are going to have to tell me what is bothering you at some point."

"I'm fine."

Luke shook his head. "You are not fine." He just wished that he knew what was bothering him.

Jess wasn't ready to talk about it.

* * *

Luke and Jess walked into the house. Lorelai and the kids hadn't made it back yet. "Are you hungry? You didn't eat at the diner."

"I'm good."

"You know you have to eat." Luke felt like a broken record. You've got to eat. You've got to stop fighting with Ryan. You've got to talk. He felt like he was getting it all wrong with Jess, but he didn't know what else to do. "You know what. If you aren't hungry don't worry about it."

"I wasn't."

Luke sighed.

"Luke, we are home."

Luke heard Lorelai's voice and headed into the living room. "Hi."

"Hey." She gave him a quick kiss.

"Mom." Ryan prodded.

Rory rolled her eyes. He didn't even let their mom get in the house.

Lorelai also rolled her eyes but then turned her attention on Luke. "Listen, Luke, can we talk?"

"Sure." Luke had a feeling something was up.

Lorelai nodded for the kids to head to the kitchen.

"Come on Ruby. I'll get you ready for bed."

"Alright." Ruby said with a yawn. "Luke, don't forget to come tuck me in."

"I won't." Luke smiled at the little girl and then looked at Lorelai as the kids walked into the kitchen. "What's going on?"

"Well." Lorelai took a moment. "Please hear me out before you say no."

"Nothing good ever starts with that sentence." Luke knew that to be true.

"I talked to Ryan about what happened today." She started.

Luke shook his head before she even got the entire sentence out. "No. I' not changing my mind."

"Luke. This is something we should have talked about before you laid down the law." Lorelai explained to him.

Luke glared at her. "I didn't think I needed to talk to you about it. I figured you would have my back."

In the kitchen, Jess and Ryan were listening to the conversation. They felt like it was about to get good.

"That's not how it should work. You don't make decisions and just expect me to go along with it." Lorelai sighed heavily. He wasn't listening to her.

"They disobeyed us. They deserved to be punished."

"You." Lorelai corrected him.

"What?" He gave her a look.

"They disobeyed you." She said simply. "We should have talked about it."

"I thought I had rights where the kids were concerned. I thought we were doing this together."

"You do. We are. That's what I'm trying to say."

"I only have rights if you approve of it ahead of time." Luke threw his hand in the air. "That's how it works."

"That's not what I am saying." Lorelai sighed. "We are supposed to be a team. We do it together."

"So now that I have punished them, you want to take it back." That didn't make sense to Luke. "That doesn't bode well for out authority."

"I don't want to take it back. They are still in trouble, but Ryan has tickets to a concert tomorrow." She knew it sounded crazy, but she was upset at Luke for not discussing things with her first. "I say we let him go and then tack on an extra day or two."

"No." Luke said quickly. That sounded like a horrible idea to him. "Lorelai. We don't negotiate punishments."

"It's only because Lane can go, and Mrs. Kim never lets her go anywhere. I don't want her to miss out just because Ryan did something stupid." Lorelai tried to explain herself to him. She could tell that she was getting nowhere.

"Lorelai." Luke didn't know what else to say.

"He knows what he did was wrong."

"That's not fair." Jess said as he burst into the room.

"Jess." Luke had a feeling none of this was going to go well.

"Yes it is." Ryan followed suit.

"Ryan."

"He shouldn't go to that concert, while I'm forced to stay here on a Saturday night." Jess argued.

"It's not like you have anything better to do." Ryan quipped.

"You are such a dick."

"It is obvious they haven't learned anything." Luke told Lorelai.

"Jess, I wouldn't even be suggesting it, if Lane wasn't involved." Lorelai tried to tell him.

"Well if Mrs. Kim knew the truth, she wouldn't let Lane go anyways." Jess knew that Lorelai had no idea what he was talking about.

"Shut up, Jess." Ryan yelled.

"No." Lorelai waved her hand. "Jess, I'd like to know what you meant."

"Mrs. Kim thinks they are going to a religious concert."

Lorelai looked at Ryan with surprise. "Ryan, is this true?"

"Thanks a lot, Jess." Ryan grumbled.

"I'm guessing that is a yes."

"I seriously hate you." Ryan told Jess.

"I can't believe you would lie to Mrs. Kim. That lady is scary."

"Technically we didn't lie."

"Technically Mrs. Kim doesn't know the truth. I don't care how that happened. I just care that it happened." Lorelai said with arms crossed.

"It's not a big deal."

"That seems to be your answer for everything these days."

"I think this is further proof that you two are stay here, upstairs in your room, together all day tomorrow." Luke stepped in.

"Mom." Ryan began to complain.

"Of course you are going to try to get out of it."

"I'm sorry, Ryan, but you can't go. Now I have to tell Mrs. Kim the truth."

"No you don't. She'll never let Lane out of the house again." Ryan tried to convince his mom it was a bad idea.

"I have to respect mom code. I'd want to know if you had lied to me, which.." She put her fingers in the air and made air quotes. "Technically you did."

"That is why I didn't tell you in the first place. Just great." He turned to Jess. "This is all your fault. I hope you are happy with yourself."

"Ryan." Lorelai said softly.

"Goodnight, mom and Mr. Dictator, Luke." Ryan headed up the stairs. "I know who is in charge in this house."

"Just let it go." Luke told Lorelai. "He will get over it." He looked at Jess. "Jess, why don't you head bed too?"

"Night." Jess nodded at both of them and joined Ryan upstairs.

Luke looked at Lorelai. "I think we made the right decision."

Lorelai sighed.

"You don't think so."

"I think that if this is going to work, we are going to have to communicate. We can't make decisions without each other, especially when it comes to the kids."

"Specifically your kids. Because they aren't my kids." Luke said harshly.

"Luke. That is not what I mean and you know it."

"We aren't married. We are just living together, right. That means I don't get a say in anything."

"You really aren't listening to me." She was getting frustrated with him. It had been a really long day.

"You aren't listening to me." He argued back. "This communication thing goes both ways." He pointed between the two of them. "It seems to be your way or the highway."

"That is not what I am saying." She threw her hands up in the air. "I can't believe we are even arguing about this."

"Me either. But you are the one that started it." He turned to walk away.

"Where are you going?"

"Ruby asked me to tuck her in. We both know that she will want me to read her a book. I'm not going to let her down." He walked away.

"Luke." Lorelai said softly. This had not gone well. Not at all.

* * *

 **Alright, let me know what you thought!**


	77. The Hole

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter! Glad to see that you are all sticking with me through this story!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2.4: The Hole**

Lorelai woke up the next morning to an empty bed. She sighed sadly. She had fallen asleep before Luke had come to bed. To her disappointment, he didn't give her a kiss on her forehead like he normally did every single morning. Most mornings she didn't let him know that it woke her up because she knew that he'd probably stop. It had become her favorite way to start the day, and she was really sad that her day wasn't going to start with that morning forehead kiss.

She knew that she had been wrong. She shouldn't have let Ryan talk her into going against Luke, but she wanted everyone to be happy. She didn't want Ryan to be mad at Luke. But clearly she had misjudged the entire situation and made several mistakes.

But…Luke was also wrong. They were nowhere near ready to get married, especially if they couldn't even agree on how to discipline the kids. They had to make decisions together as a team. That was the only way any of it was going to work.

She got out of bed and got herself ready for work. She wasn't fond of having to work on Saturdays, but every now and then she had to do it. She was sure that Rory was spending the day with Dean, like how she spent most of her Saturdays these days. Ruby was going to spend the day playing with Babette and her baby, Cinnamon. The boys were to stay in their room all day. She was sure that wasn't going to happen. She also hoped they wouldn't kill each other.

After she got herself ready, she headed to the boys' room. She was surprised to see that they were already awake. She tapped gently on the door and then walked in. Ryan was sitting on his bed reading. Jess had his head in what looked like his history book. "What are you two doing up so early?"

"Dictator Luke woke us up before he left to make sure that we knew we weren't allowed to leave our room or the house all day."

"Don't call him that." Lorelai responded. "It isn't very nice nor is it true."

"He isn't very nice." Jess quipped referring to Ryan.

"Jess." Lorelai warned.

Jess sighed and put his nose back into his history book. He wasn't interested in making Lorelai mad at him.

"I want you both to apologize to Luke." Lorelai told the boys. "If he asks you to be somewhere, then you should be there no matter what."

"Mom. Did you change your mind about the concert?" Ryan asked clearly not listening to anything she had said.

Lorelai shook her head, a little disappointed that he even asked. "No way. Not only did you disobey Luke, but you lied to Mrs. Kim."

"We didn't lie to Mrs. Kim."

"If she thinks that you are going to a religious concert, then it was a lie of omission, which is just as bad." Lorelai explained to her teenage son. "The worst part is now I have to tell her."

"You don't have to tell her." Ryan told her. "Really mom. She doesn't have to know. If you tell her, Lane will never be able to leave the house. Do you want that for Lane?"

Lorelai glared at her son. "Don't turn this back on me. You are the one that did something wrong." She pointed out. "That's why any of your free time next week will be spent helping us at the Inn."

"What?" Ryan groaned. "You're seriously mad at me?"

"Seriously." Lorelai informed him. She was pretty upset with him, but the truth was, they could always use the help at the Inn. "Now I have to go. Please try not to kill each other."

"No promises." Jess joked.

Lorelai smiled. "I mean it. I won't have time to clean up the bodies." She joked as she walked out of their room and downstairs. Ruby was sitting in front of the TV. Thankfully she was already dressed. Thanks to Rory. That girl was a huge help when it came to helping with Ruby.

"Mommy." Ruby jumped up from the couch and ran to give Lorelai a big hug.

"Hey Rubear." Lorelai hugged her tight. "Are you all ready to go to Babette's?"

Ruby nodded. "Where is Luke?"

"You know that he is at work."

"Can we go see him?"

"Not right now. You will see him tonight." Lorelai told her.

"Oh." Ruby sighed. "I love Luke."

"I know you do. He loves you too." Lorelai led Ruby to the couch. "We need to get your shoes on."

"Okay. Here they are." She grabbed them from behind the couch. "I'm really glad that we moved here."

"Me too." She helped Ruby with her shoes.

"I really, really like it here, and if we hadn't move, we would have never met Luke. He's the best." Ruby glowed as she talked about him.

"I agree." Lorelai smiled. She was happy that Ruby loved Luke so much.

"I hope that he knows how much I love him." She said.

"He does."

"I wouldn't want him to leave." Ruby stood up after her shoes were successfully on her feet.

"Wait." Lorelai stopped her. "What do you mean, you don't want Luke to leave?"

"That's what happens." Ruby said as if her mom was supposed to know what she was talking about.

Lorelai was still confused. "Sweetie. I'm going to need you to be a little clearer."

"It was my fault that daddy was never around." Ruby looked up at her mom.

Lorelai was shocked to hear Ruby say something like that. "Hon. Why would you think something like that?"

"I don't think he thought that I liked him." Ruby said simply. "Can we go to Babette's now?"

"Wait." Lorelai stopped Ruby from walking away. "Hon. I never want you to think you had anything to do with your daddy's behavior. He is responsible for his actions. Not you. I promise."

"I don't want Luke to leave. I like him a lot more than daddy. He's nicer."

Lorelai smiled. Those words made her happy and sad all at the same time. "Luke loves you. I know that. He isn't going anywhere."

"But you had a fight last night."

"It wasn't a fight." Lorelai lied. It was most definitely a fight.

Ruby nodded. "It's not good to lie mommy. Pinocchio's nose grew and so will yours."

"Ruby. Sweetie." Lorelai touched Ruby's shoulder softly. "Sometimes grownups have disagreements, but it doesn't mean that one of them is going to leave or that they stop loving each other. Luke and I love each other very much. I know it's hard to understand, but your daddy and I just weren't meant to be together." Lorelai hated trying to explain that to her little girl.

"I'm not sad that daddy left because we were able to find Luke, and he is the best. He really does make the best chocolate milkshakes. I just want him to know how much I love him and that I like having him around." Ruby said with a smile.

"He knows that. I am sure of it." Lorelai kissed her forehead. "You don't have to try so hard."

"I love you too, mommy." She gave Lorelai a kiss. "Now can we please go to Babette's?"

Lorelai nodded. "Let's do it."

"Yay. I can't wait to play with her cat. Cinnamon is the best." As they walked out the door, Ruby turned to her mom, "Can we get a cat?"

"Not a chance. We aren't animal people."

"I think we should try to be animal people." Ruby smiled.

"I think you should just visit Babette when you think you want a cat."

"Alright. I think if I try a little harder, I'll be able to convince you."

"We will see." Lorelai chuckled.

"You bet." Ruby skipped to Babette's.

Lorelai shook her head. Now more than ever, she hated that she and Luke had gotten into a fight. She never wanted Ruby to worry about Luke leaving. She knew everything was going to be okay. They just had to get in sync when it came to their parenting techniques.

* * *

"I think she's gone." Ryan went to his window to see if he could see his mom's jeep.

"You aren't sneaking out." Jess told him.

"Excuse me. Who is going to know?"

"I'm going to know." Jess closed his history book. "And I am not going to lie for you."

"I'm not asking you to lie for me. Just keep your big mouth shut."

"That's not going to happen."

Ryan couldn't believe what he was hearing. "What is up to you? The old Jess would have been down for sneaking out with me. When did you become such a goody-goody?"

"Ugh." Jess threw his history book down. "I'm getting really tired of people comparing me to old Jess and new Jess. That's a bunch a bullshit. I'm the same person I have always been." Jess stood up.

"You aren't the same person that I met that's for sure." Ryan stood up. "You completely changed once you started at Chilton."

Jess rolled his eyes. "Just last night Uncle Luke accused me of being like the old Jess that first came to Stars Hollow. I guess I need to let the two of you decide who I am. I just wish the two of you would get on the same page. I don't want to have an identity crisis."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "I'm not staying here."

"I'm not letting you leave." Jess walked to the door. "If you leave, somehow, someway my ass will get into more trouble. I'm not looking to spend another Saturday stuck in this room with you."

"They aren't going to find out." Ryan tried to go around him, but to no avail.

Jess moved quickly. "I didn't realize that you were that stupid. We live in Stars Hollow. The whole town probably already knows that we are grounded. If they see you out, they are going to tell Luke. He is going to be even more pissed off."

"I'll take my chances." He tried to go around him once again, but failed.

"You are going to have to kill me if you want to leave this house."

"You are going to have to let me go to the bathroom." Ryan pointed out.

"There's the window." Jess pointed.

Ryan sighed. "You're being a dick."

"Takes one to know one."

"Fine. You win." Ryan slowly walks away from the door.

Jess relaxes for a second. Ryan charges the door causing Jess to fall back. The two boys start fighting on the ground.

"I'm gonna kill you." Ryan yelled as Jess threw a few punches.

They both kept going back and forth. Jess was able to make to his feet. Ryan stood up and shoved Jess into the table, putting a noticeable hole in the wall. "Look what you did." Jess yelled.

"It was your fault."

"I'm pretty sure it was your fault." Jess shook his head. "Uncle Luke is going to freak out."

"We are never going to be able to leave the house again." Ryan dropped his head. "What are you going to do?"

"This is on you."

"No. We are in this together." Ryan informed him. "If I am going down then you are going down with me."

"We could probably fix it, but we are going to have to get some tools and supplies."

"We aren't allowed to leave the house…Remember." Ryan pointed to the hole. "That's why this happened."

Jess grumbled. "I think I have a plan."

* * *

Lorelai walked out of the kitchen at the Inn carrying her coffee. She would be glad when Sookie was able to come back from maternity leave. The Inn just wasn't the same without her. She missed having her best friend around.

"Lorelai." Mia said as she followed Lorelai to the desk. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Lorelai lied.

"Darling, you know that I know when you aren't fine." Mia told her. "Tell me what is bothering you."

Lorelai sighed heavily. "Luke and I had a little disagreement over how to parent the boys."

"Oh no. Come here." Mia led Lorelai to the lobby couch. "Tell me about it."

"Oh Mia. I don't even know where to start." Lorelai sat down on the couch. "I don't why I thought moving in together would be easy peasy."

"Because you are human. We all want things to be easy."

"Luke and I are good together, but we can't seem to get on the same page with the kids, specifically Ryan and Jess." Lorelai explained. "I think he is too hard on them, and he thinks I'm too easy on them." She sighed. "I know I was wrong. Luke grounded the boys for fighting and disobeying him. I understand that, but he didn't even talk to me about it. I did get my feelings hurt. It was dumb. I know it."

"Lorelai." Mia said soothingly.

"Ryan was supposed to go to a concert tonight with Lane."

"Oh." Mia had a feeling she knew where this was going.

"I let him convince me to let him go." Lorelai shook her head. "It was such a rookie move. Ryan knew I was upset that Luke didn't talk to me first before punishing him. He played on those emotions, and I totally fell for it. My younger self is kicking me in the ass for giving in."

"Luke didn't take it well?" Mia asked knowingly.

"Um no. He was really mad at me. I don't blame him. I really don't."

"Is Ryan going to the concert?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No. During all of this I found out that he and Lane lied to Mrs. Kim about what kind of concert they were going too."

"I'm guessing she thinks it is a religious concert."

"Bingo." Lorelai smiled. "I should have known that too. Mrs. Kim has never let Lane go to a concert before. I should have known that she didn't know the truth. Another rookie move."

"You are being too hard on yourself."

"You are being too easy on me." Lorelai told her.

"Lorelai. This is all so new to you. You may have been married before, but like you said, Christopher was never around. You were basically a single parent. Parenting together is not easy. It takes a lot of work and communication. You and Luke will figure it out."

Lorelai sighed. "Luke is still upset that I didn't say yes to his proposal. He said I'm the one making all of the decisions in our relationship. Is that true?"

"Do you think that it is true?" Mia asked.

Lorelai thought about it. "Well. I. I don't know. Maybe."

"Do you think that you and Luke are ready to get married?" Mia asked her.

Lorelai sighed and shook her head. "No. Not yet anyway. There are a lot of things that we need to work out. Case in point our communication skills."

"Then you were right to say no to his proposal."

"I love him though."

"Sometimes that isn't enough." Mia touched her shoulder.

"I know that I want to be with Luke forever." Lorelai smiled. "And Ruby. She's afraid that he is going to leave like Christopher did. She thinks it would be her fault. That's why she has been so attached to him lately."

"I'm sure you told her otherwise."

Lorelai nodded. She hoped that her little girl had listened.

"You need to stop beating yourself up. This is par for the course, and it will get better."

"You are right." Lorelai knew that. "Do you mind if I take my break early? I need to go talk to Mrs. Kim about Lane."

"Oh no. That doesn't sound like a whole lot of fun."

"Yeah. I know. I hope that I survive." Lorelai stood up and Mia followed suit.

"Go ahead. And if you need to take the rest of the day, go ahead. I'm sure you need to talk to Luke. We are fine here. Thankfully there are no weddings this weekend."

"Thanks, Mia." Lorelai was extremely appreciative for a good boss. They were hard to come by sometimes.

"It's going to be okay, Lorelai." Mia told her with a hug. "Nothing is ever easy when you are dealing with teenagers, and you are now dealing with three."

"Yeah. Do you want to take one off of my hands? I'll gladly give you Ryan." Lorelai joked.

"I'd take Ruby in a heartbeat."

"I'm sure I will gladly want to give her away when she becomes a teenager too."

"I'll take you up on that." Mia smiled at the young woman.

Mia was right. Everything was going to be okay. Lorelai just needed to talk to Luke.

* * *

Ryan opened the front door to see Kirk standing in front of him, holding a few bags. Jess walked up behind Ryan and Ryan turned around. "You called Kirk."

"Yes he did." Kirk walked in.

"Of all people in the world and you called Kirk." Ryan was surprised. "I thought you were supposed to be the smart one."

"He works at the hardware store."

"He works at every store in town. That doesn't mean he is qualified to do anything." Ryan ranted.

"I'm standing right here." Kirk pointed at himself. "I am a busy man."

"Did you get everything on my list?" Jess asked the man.

Kirk nodded. "Yes. And you owe me 56 dollars."

"What?" Jess was a little confused. "The stuff I asked for should not have cost 56 dollars."

"I charged a delivery fee." Kirk handed him the receipt.

"Kirk!" Jess exclaimed. "You charged a 25 dollar delivery fee. It's like a five minute walk."

"It's called business my friend." Kirk smiled and held out his hand. "I'll take that money now."

Jess sighed.

"Good job, Jess." Ryan reached for his wallet.

"You are going to pay for it."

"I'm going to help you pay for it." Ryan told him. "Here is my half." He handed it to Kirk.

Jess was a little surprised.

"Where is the hole?" Kirk asked.

"Upstairs."

"Is it a big hole?"

"It is a noticeable hole." Jess told him as he fished the money out of his wallet.

Kirk walked upstairs.

"He's not staying, is he?" Ryan asked. "Because you know he is going to be more trouble than help."

"That should probably be on his tombstone one day." Jess joked.

"Wow." Kirk appeared at the top of the stairs. "Luke is going to kill you."

"We are going to fix it, Kirk." Jess explained.

"Ha." Kirk walked down the stairs. "Good luck with that. I'd be pretty scared of Luke. He is always grumpy. And he gets pretty mad when I make a hole in my pie and don't eat it all. He isn't going to take a hole in the wall very well."

"Thanks, Kirk." Jess led Kirk to the door. "Here is the rest of your money. We'd appreciate if you would keep this between us."

"Sure. For an extra five dollars."

"Seriously." Jess was really rethinking his idea to call him.

Kirk held out his hand.

Jess handed him the money. "Bye Kirk."

"Pleasure doing business with you boys."

Jess closed the door.

"That was a horrible idea."

"We didn't have any other option." Jess took the bag of stuff and headed upstairs.

Ryan followed him. "Do you think this is going to work?"

"I hope so." Jess stared at the hole. He had seen his uncle repair many things before. It shouldn't be that hard.

* * *

"Hey Luke." Jackson said as he sat down at the counter.

"What can I get you, Jackson?" Luke said grumpily.

"Are you okay, man?" Jackson could immediately tell that something was bothering his friend.

"Fine." Luke said quickly.

"Oh okay."

"Sir. These pancakes are a little burnt."

"They are not burnt."

"Yes." The man pointed at the pancakes. "See."

"They are NOT burnt." Luke repeated.

Jackson could feel the tension.

"But if you would just look."

"I don't need to look because they aren't burnt." Luke took the pancakes from the man. "If you don't want them then don't eat." Luke took the plate to the back.

The man looked at Jackson.

"Bad day. Here." Jackson handed him some money. "Go down to Westins. It's on me."

"Thanks."

Luke came back out.

"Alright buddy." Jackson pulled Luke to the back.

"What? Jackson. I have to work."

"Are you and Lorelai fighting?"

Luke didn't say anything.

"You are a little high-strung. More so than normal." Jackson informed him.

"I'm fine. I need to get back out there. I have a business to run."

"Luke." Jackson gave him a look.

"I just don't know where are relationship is headed." The words came out of his mouth unexpectedly.

"What? You live together." Jackson thought Luke sounded absurd. "I think your relationship is headed in the right direction."

"I've never felt like this before. Not even when I was with Rachel." Luke told him. "I never wanted to be married before. I didn't care about that. But now. With her. That's all I want. And I can't help but worry that she'll never get on that page."

"You sound like a crazy man." Jackson said quickly. "Lorelai Gilmore loves you. No one should have to tell you that."

"She doesn't want to get married." He couldn't help but let that fact bother him.

"Yet." Jackson added. "She isn't ready to get married yet."

"But why?"

"Luke, are you really ready to get married?" Jackson asked. "I know you love Lorelai, but marriage is a lot of work. Being a parent is even harder. And it's going to be even harder for the two of you because you are "step" parents. That's a lot to navigate. Trust me on that."

"You aren't a "step" parent."

"No." Jackson said. "But I know it is hard. What has brought all of this on? I've never seen you like this before."

"We got into a fight over the kids."

Jackson nodded. "It was just a fight."

"I was mad. She was mad. I was a jerk." Luke admitted. "I waited to go to bed until I knew that she was already asleep, and I didn't give her a kiss this morning. Something I immediately regretted."

"Again. I repeat. It was just a fight." Jackson smiled. "It is not the end of the world or the end of the relationship. Couples fight all the time."

Luke sighed. "I know that."

"When Davey was first born Sookie believed in self soothing. I on the other hand thought that was a stupid idea. The baby was crying and crying. But she would not let me pick him up." Jackson explained while Luke listened, trying to figure out where he was going with this. "So when Sookie wasn't around I would pick Davey up when he was crying. Somehow Sookie figured it out and she was livid. But I told her that I didn't believe in self soothing. I thought it was horrible idea. We got into an argument, but finally we talked it through and decided to compromise. I realized in that moment that comprise was the key to parenting."

"Really?" Luke chuckled.

"Yeah. Compromise and working together. You've got to be on the same team or it will never work. And you are starting off with teenagers so it isn't going to be easy."

"Yeah. Tell me about it."

"But through it all you can't doubt your love for one another."

"You sound like a motivational speaker."

"You've given me a lot of motivational speeches over the years. I'm just returning the favor." Jackson told his friend. "I mean yours were grumpier than this one, but they all work the same way."

"Thanks, Jackson."

"Feeling better now."

"Yeah. I need to talk to Lorelai."

"Good idea."

"Coffee on the house."

"I like that. I give advice, and I get free coffee." Jackson smiled.

"Anytime, Jackson."

* * *

Rory and Dean were at the library. Rory was studying, and Dean was watching her. "Rory, are you done yet?"

Rory looked up from her book. "Dean. We haven't even been here that long."

"Seriously, Rory. We've been here for three hours."

"I have a lot of studying to do."

"Uh." Dean sighed. "This is all you ever want to do."

"Well Chilton is a hard school."

"You are a genius, Rory." Dean stated.

Rory rolled her eyes. "Yeah. Right."

"Rory, what's going on?"

"Nothing. I need to study." Rory looked back at her book.

"It's a Saturday." Dean stated the obvious.

"The perfect day to study." Rory looked back up at him. "Dean. You knew that I needed to study today. You could have stayed home."

"I don't understand why you are so worried about it. You're going to get an A no matter how hard you study."

"Yeah right." Rory reached into her bag. "This is not an A." She showed Dean one of her tests where she earned a "D". "I'm not doing that well at Chilton. I don't understand what is going on. I've been trying so hard. I don't know why it is so hard. Jess is doing great, but I'm failing."

"You are not failing."

"Yes I am."

"It was one D." Dean tried to reassure her.

"It wasn't just one D." Rory handed him another test.

"Have you told your mom?" Dean wondered.

Rory shook her head. "No. She'll be so disappointed in me."

"Your mom would never be disappointed in you."

"I'm failing out of Chilton."

"You are not going to fail out of Chilton." Dean didn't know what else to say. He felt bad that he had given her such a hard time. "I'm sure you've gotten some A's."

"Yeah. I have but I've gotten two D's, Dean. I've never gotten D's in my whole life until I started going to Chilton." Rory sighed. "That's why I have to study. I have to do better."

"Okay." Dean nodded. "We can stay here as long as you want."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Really." Dean opened his bag back up. "I'll study some more too."

"Thanks, Dean." Rory looked back at her notes. She was determined to do better. She had to do better.

* * *

Luke was walking back to the diner. He had to go to the market. They had run out of ketchup. He had forgotten to order the ketchup. Fortunately, Doosey's had plenty of ketchup. As he was walking he saw Kirk. "Hey Kirk." He never knew if speaking to Kirk was a good idea.

Kirk walked right past him without speaking.

Luke thought that was extremely weird, even for Kirk. He always spoke, more than he probably should. "Kirk." Luke turned around to walk next to Kirk.

Kirk didn't say anything.

"Kirk." Luke felt like he was probably going to regret it. "Hey. Kirk."

Kirk stopped walking. "I can't talk to you today."

"Why not?"

"Just can't. It's Saturday. I've decided I can't talk to you on Saturdays."

"Kirk. That's weird even for you."

"Yep. That's me. I'm weird." Kirk nervously looked away from Luke. "I got to go." He turned quickly to leave, dropping money out of his pocket.

"Kirk, you dropped some money."

"Oh thanks. Jess would be mad if I lost his money and needed him to give me some more." Kirk took the money.

"Why did Jess give you money?"

"Oh." Kirk realized what he had done. "No reason. Bye Luke." With that said he ran off from Luke.

Luke sighed. He had a feeling the boys were up to something. He would have to deal with it when he got home.

* * *

"Hold that." Jess instructed Ryan.

"I don't think this is working."

"Yes it is."

"Kirk didn't get the right paint." Ryan told him.

"It will do."

"Jess."

"Ryan, could you please give me a break, okay. I'm trying the best that I can."

Ryan could tell that something was really bothering Jess. "Sure. Sorry."

"Right."

Ryan thought for a moment. "I really am sorry."

"For what?"

"For what happened with Scarlett." Ryan admitted. "I should have told you when I realized that something might be happening between the two of them."

"It's okay." Jess continued to work on the wall. "You were right about me being a lousy boyfriend. I have had a lot on my mind lately."

"You want to talk about it."

"Nah."

"Well you can, you know. Talk to me." Ryan wanted him to know that.

"Duly noted."

"You know. It was hard for me when you went to Chilton. I lost my best friend." Ryan finally told him how he felt.

"I didn't die." Jess looked at Ryan.

"Yeah. I know that."

"I don't like your new friends." Jess wanted to be honest with him. "But I don't like fighting with you either."

"Yeah. It sucks."

Jess stopped what he was doing. "Truce."

"Truce." Ryan shook his hand. "And you know man if you want to talk about whatever is bothering you, I'm here for you."

Jess nodded, but he wasn't ready to talk about it. "Let's get this thing fixed so we aren't grounded until we are thirty."

"Good plan."

Ryan and Jess continued to work together, but Ryan was worried about his friend and roommate.

* * *

Lorelai was standing outside of Kim's antiques. She was trying to decide how she was going to tell Mrs. Kim about the concert.

"Lorelai." Lane said as she walked outside. "What are you doing out here?"

"Trying to decide how I am going to tell your mom that the concert you were going to was in fact not a religious concert." Lorelai gave Lane a look.

Lane's face dropped. "Oh. You found out."

"Yes. Yes I did." Lorelai informed her. "Lane."

"I really wanted to go to the concert. I knew that she was going to say no. She always says no."

"I understand. Believe me. I understand better than most people." Lorelai started. "But I don't think it is a good idea to lie to your mom."

"She just doesn't understand, Lorelai." Lane sighed. "I'm sorry that I lied."

"I think that you are probably sorrier that you got caught." She put her hand on Lane's shoulder. "That's how I used to feel."

"She will never understand my love for music."

"Maybe you should slowly try. Spring a little bit of it on her every now and then. Slowly peel that band aid off, baby." Lorelai gave her good advice. "I don't want you and your mom to have the same relationship that my mom and I had. It isn't fun."

"Are you going to tell her?"

"I was going to tell her, but I think I will let it go this time." Lorelai had decided.

"Really? You are going to let us go to the concert."

"Oh no. Ryan is grounded." Lorelai smiled. "So no one is going to the concert."

"Oh."

"I know. It sucks being a kid sometimes."

"So you really aren't going to tell her?" Lane asked.

Lorelai shook her head. "I'm not going to tell her because I don't want to put even more of wedge between the two of you, but the next time you and Ryan want to go to a concert I am going to fully investigate the artist to make sure that it will be Mrs. Kim approved. I don't agree with your mom's beliefs anymore than you do, but I have to respect her wishes as a parent."

"I know. Mom code."

"Yes. You will understand in fifty years when you have kids of your own. Besides you never know, if you give your mom the chance she may surprise you."

"That's highly unlikely. She isn't like you."

"No. But she is your mom." Lorelai gave her a hug. "I wish when I was your age I would have had someone to tell me that. My relationship with my mom may have been different. She may not have driven me completely up the wall."

"I'll take that into consideration."

"Good girl." Lorelai smiled. "No more lying."

"Got it." Lane was relieved that Lorelai wasn't going to tell her mom.

* * *

Lorelai made her way to the diner. As she opened the door, she began to scan the crowd to find Luke.

Luke walked out of the back. He was relieved to see Lorelai. "Hi." He waved.

She titled her head towards the upstairs apartment. Luke nodded and both adults walked upstairs. Luke opened the door and Lorelai followed him in.

"I'm glad you are here." Luke told her. "I felt really bad about how we left things."

Lorelai nodded. "You didn't kiss me goodbye this morning."

Luke gave her a look. He didn't know that she knew that he did it.

"It's the best way to start my day."

"I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too. I should have backed you up."

He led her to the couch, and they sat down. "I shouldn't have grounded the boys without talking to you first."

Lorelai sighed. "This is hard." She admitted. "Although Christopher and I were married, we never parented together. I was always in charge."

Luke nodded. "Yeah. Same with Jess. Ever since he moved here, I've been in charge of him, and I'm really worried about him. I saw him yell at a girl he goes to school with last night. He was really angry. I haven't seen him like that in a long time."

"Which girl?"

"Penny?"

"Paris." Lorelai figured.

"I guess so. It doesn't matter who it was. It only matters that he did it."

She touched his hand. "He'll come to you when he is ready to talk."

Luke sighed. He hoped that she was right. He couldn't stand to think that something was wrong with Jess. "I'm also sorry that I threw the whole getting married thing in your face. You didn't deserve that."

"I know that I want to be with you, Luke. I just think that we should wait."

"You are right. I see that now." Luke admitted. "We need to figure this whole living together and parenting thing out before we get married."

Lorelai smiled. She was relieved to hear him say that. "How are we going to do this?"

"Together." Luke said simply as he squeezed her hand.

"I like the sound of that." Lorelai kissed his cheek.

"I promise that I will never leave the house without kissing you goodbye."

"I am going to hold you to that." Lorelai smiled. "Ruby was upset about our fight. She thinks you are going to leave like Christopher did."

"What? No. That's never going to happen."

"That's what I told her." Lorelai took a breath.

"I'm not going anywhere." He promised. "You are stuck with me." Luke reassured her.

"Good. Ruby would be devastated. We all would be."

"So now I think we should sit here and come with our parenting plan."

Lorelai chuckled.

"What?"

"I never thought I would ever hear you say parenting plan. Say it again. It is kind of sexy."

Luke gave her a look.

"Pleeeeeeaaaaaasssseeeee."

"Parenting plan."

Lorelai swooned. "That really does it for me."

"Parenting plan. Parenting plan." Luke continued to say as Lorelai positioned herself on top of him. "Parenting plan."

"So turned on right now."

* * *

Jess and Ryan were staring at the wall. You could totally tell that they had messed it up. It wasn't as bad as before, but it was totally noticeable. "We are never going to leave this house again." Ryan thought.

Jess sighed. "It was a good try."

"Boys."

They heard Luke's voice from downstairs and gave each other a look.

Jess positioned the table and picture over the hole. "Maybe they won't be able to tell."

"Boys."

They heard Lorelai's voice.

"We better go." Jess said as they headed downstairs.

"Hey guys." Lorelai greeted them.

"What are you both doing home?" Ryan asked.

"We wanted to talk to you." Luke answered.

The front door opened and Rory walked in the house. "Oh good. All of our teenagers are here." Lorelai smiled at her daughter.

"Uh oh." Rory said knowing something was up.

"Everyone sit down."

"This seems serious." Ryan said. "Are you two splitting up?"

"No. We are having a family meeting." Lorelai explained.

"I'm the good one." Rory told the boys. "This can't be about me."

"Alright." Luke started. "We are a team." He pointed between himself and Lorelai. He looked at the kids. "I know that this is new for all of us, and it is going to take some time to adjust to it." He then looked at Ryan and Rory "I know that I'm not your dad, but I am trying to be your parent. I'm gonna be here for the two of you no matter what. I only want the best for both of you." He looked at Jess. "All of you." He wanted to make sure that Jess knew that. "Sometimes I'm going to have to be the bad guy."

"But he isn't going to be the bad guy all by himself." Lorelai added. "We are in this together which means we will be deciding things together."

"As a team." Luke added.

"No more manipulating us." Lorelai looked at Ryan. "If you ask me for something, you can be damn sure that I'm going to talk to Luke before making a decision."

All three kids nodded.

"I'm not going anywhere." Luke reminded them. "We are a family."

Jess frowned where no one could see.

"Luke was right to ground you." She told Ryan. "You two have got to get along. There isn't going to be anymore fighting."

"We are not fighting anymore."

"We made up." Jess added.

Luke and Lorelai smiled. "Really?"

"Yeah. Being locked up all day helped." Jess said.

"We learned our lesson." Ryan said hopefully.

"You are still grounded for the rest of the weekend."

"Aw." Ryan groaned.

"Lorelai and I are going to go to the concert." Luke told him.

"What? That's totally unfair."

"Date night, baby." Lorelai chuckled. "I paid for those tickets."

"This sucks."

"Start getting along with Jess." Lorelai told him.

"But we are friends again." Ryan told her.

"We are glad. But you are still in trouble." Lorelai smiled. "And we are still going to that concert. I'll be sure to tell you how much fun we had."

"Totally child abuse." Ryan glared at his mom. Maybe she'd bring him back a t-shirt.

"And I want to know why you gave Kirk money." Luke looked at the two boys. He had filled Lorelai in on his run in with Kirk.

Jess and Ryan shared looks.

"Come on. What did you do?"

"Nothing."

Luke gave them another look.

"We…" Jess started, but Ryan interrupted him.

"I tripped and put a hole in the wall. Jess tried to help me fix it."

"A hole?" Lorelai grimaced.

"But it is okay. We kind of fixed it."

"We worked together." Ryan added. "That should mean something, right?"

Lorelai and Luke looked at each other. "That depends on the hole. Show me." Luke walked towards the stairs. Ryan and Jess started to follow him.

"Hey Jess." Lorelai grabbed his shoulder gently.

Jess just looked at her.

"I wanted you to know that I'm here for you too. Anything you need, all you have to do is ask. Sometimes you just need a woman's opinion."

Jess nodded. "Sure. Thanks, Lorelai."

"Hey Lorelai. It isn't too bad." Luke yelled from upstairs.

"Oh that's good news." Lorelai gave Jess a thoughtful look. "Come on let's go help him out."

"Yeah." Jess walked upstairs.

Lorelai was now worried about Jess. He did seem like something was on his mind.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	78. Attitude

**Sorry it has been a while since I posted a chapter. Work was crazy and then I got the flu. But I'm feeling better now, and it is the perfect time to post a chapter. It is a short chapter, but I wanted to get something posted. I hope you all enjoy.**

 **A Place to Call Home **

**Chapter 2.5: Attitude**

Rory tapped her fingers against the table and sighed heavily. Which didn't go unnoticed by Lorelai or Luke. She wasn't happy with the current situation. She was mad that her mom had made her attend Ryan's basketball game, but she was even madder that she was now being forced to eat dinner at Maisey's and Buddy's. She loved both Maisey and Buddy and most days she was happy to spend time with them, but she really needed to study. There was no way that she could study there. It was way too loud and distracting. It was driving her crazy that no one seemed to understand that she needed to go home. They hadn't even gotten their meals yet. That was the problem with Maisey and Buddy. They always took forever because they were trying to make sure the food was perfect, and they liked to chit chat way too much.

She continued to tap her fingers and sighed again.

"Rory." Lorelai warned as she shot her a look.

Rory didn't say anything. She only sighed.

Lorelai leaned over to her daughter. "What's going on with you?"

"Nothing."

"Could have fooled me." Lorelai touched her shoulder.

"I don't have time for this." Rory said angrily.

"Rory. We will be done soon." Lorelai said calmly.

"We haven't even gotten our food yet, and we have been here for over thirty minutes."

"They brought us biscuits." Ryan butted in as he grabbed another biscuit.

"Mom." Rory groaned.

Lorelai was really surprised by her daughter's behavior. She had been in a serious mood for the last couple of days, and it was not Lorelai's favorite Rory mood. That was for sure.

"I need to study." Rory said again.

"You will have plenty of time to study."

"Yeah but I won't be able to sleep, and if I'm not able to sleep I'm bound to fall asleep during the test. Is that what you want for me?" Rory raised her voice.

"Excuse us for a second." Lorelai told the table as she stood up and pointed for Rory to join her.

Rory sighed and reluctantly followed her mom. "Is everything okay?" Maisey asked the two ladies.

"Just fine, Maisey. We will be right back." Lorelai told her as she led Rory outside. "Alright. Let's have it. What is going on with you?"

Rory stayed quiet. She knew that she should tell her mother that she wasn't cutting it at Chilton. She should tell her that she was probably going to fail out. She should tell her that it was all a mistake. She should even tell her that she was dumb and would never go to Harvard or Yale or even Princeton. She'd be lucky to get into community college.

But she didn't. She didn't say anything. Mainly because she was embarrassed.

"Rory." Lorelai said for what felt like the tenth time.

"I just need to study. I don't understand why you don't get that." Rory yelled.

"Hey." Lorelai said sternly as she grabbed Rory's hand softly. "I do understand that, and we will be home soon. Tonight was about supporting your brother."

"Well we have supported him. I don't know why you wouldn't let me go home after the stupid game." Rory said grumpily as she pulled away from her mom. The stress was really beginning to get to her.

Lorelai was at her wits end with her daughter. Mainly because she wasn't used to this new found teenage attitude. "You know what, you and I are going home." Lorelai decided.

Rory felt a feeling of relief fall over her.

"But we are going to talk about this attitude of yours. I don't like it. I want my sweet Rory back."

Rory remained quiet.

"Stay here. I will go get our stuff."

Back at the table, the food had finally arrived but Luke was focused on Ryan. "I still can't believe how great you were in that game. It was your best game yet." Luke said proudly. "Every time you were open you scored."

"Thanks, Luke. It was a pretty good game." Ryan smiled. He was also pretty proud of himself.

"Pretty!" Luke exclaimed. "You killed it. Twenty-six points. That's pretty impressive." Luke continued. "With more practice you are only going to get better."

Jess rolled his eyes. Luke had talked about the game non-stop since it had ended. It was beginning to drive Jess crazy.

"I don't know where he gets it." Lorelai said as she made it back to the table. "I don't have an athletic bone in my body."

"Where's Rory?" Luke asked when he realized Rory was missing.

"I'm going to take Rory home."

"What? Mom. We are supposed to be celebrating." Ryan complained. "I had an awesome game."

"I know sweets. You boys can celebrate." Lorelai told him.

"What about me? I'm not a boy." Ruby reminded her mother.

"And Ruby. How could I forget my beautiful girl?" She kissed Ruby's forehead. "So don't celebrate too hard." Lorelai kissed Luke's forehead as she grabbed her purse and Rory's backpack.

"Oh Lorelai. Are you leaving?" Maisey asked as she came back to the table with some more of their food. "I finally got the food to the table."

"Yeah I'm afraid so. Make sure this one brings me plenty of leftovers."

"Will do." Maisey started handing out the food. "I can go ahead and box your food up."

"That's okay. Just send it by Luke. He will take care of it." Lorelai looked at Luke.

"Are you sure you don't want us all to go with you?" Luke asked her, concerned about Rory.

"I'm sure. I think Rory and I need a little mother and daughter time." She gave him a reassuring loo.

Luke nodded and completely understood.

"I'll see you at home. You all have fun." Lorelai told her crew and headed outside to get Rory and take her home.

"Luke." Ruby started.

"Yes. Ruby."

"Just because mom has left does not mean that you get to keep the pie away from us." Ruby smiled. "The pie is the best part of the meal."

"Agreed." Ryan chimed in.

"Why can't I get you four to eat a salad?"

"Ewe." Ryan and Ruby said in unison.

Jess chuckled. "I'll take some chocolate cake."

"It is a never ending cycle, Maisey." Luke looked up at the older woman. "What am I going to do with them?"

"Join them." Maisey said simply. "Now let's get you all fed."

* * *

Rory and Lorelai walked into their house. Rory immediately headed to her room. "Not so fast." Lorelai stopped her.

Rory sighed and turned back towards her mom. "I've got to study."

"I get that, but you and I need to talk."

"Mom. Come on."

"No Rory. You come on." Lorelai was shocked by Rory's behavior, but most of all she was concerned. Rory was not one to misbehave or act out unless something was really bothering you. "You've been like this for a while now, and it isn't like you." Lorelai said calmly. "Why don't you tell me what's bothering you. I'm sure I can help."

"Nothing is bothering me." Rory said as she walked into the kitchen.

Lorelai followed closely behind her. "Rory. You are always able to tell me anything. You know that."

"There is nothing to tell."

"The last time you said that, you were being bullied." Lorelai reminded her.

Rory winced as she remembered the things that took place with Tristan. "I'm not being bullied."

"Then what is it? Do you not like Chilton?" Lorelai asked.

"I like Chilton." It was the truth. She didn't have a problem with Chilton. Chilton had a problem with her.

"Is it Dean?"

"It is nothing. Okay. I'm fine."

"You aren't fine." Lorelai said again. "Rory."

"Ugh." Rory sighed heavily. "I'm fine okay. Would you just leave me alone?"

Lorelai shook her head. Her heart broken by Rory's words. They didn't have that type of relationship. Lorelai didn't even know what to say. That was a first. "Fine. But we are not done talking about this." She said sternly.

Rory took her backpack and closed the door to her room. She sat on her bed. She hated fighting with her mom, but the stress of failing was really getting to her. She didn't want her mom to be disappointed in her. She took out her book and started to cry. Why wasn't she smart enough?

* * *

Later that night, Lorelai was sitting on her bed. "I think it is Chilton." She said to Luke as he walked back into the room and closed the door.

"How could it be Chilton?" Luke wondered.

"Just think about it. Both of our kids who attend Chilton have been acting really weird and secretive. Maybe it is something in the damn water." She pointed out.

"I don't know." Luke said as he sat on the bed. "I don't think it has to do with Chilton."

"I'm really worried about both of them." Lorelai told him. "Rory had such a bad attitude earlier. I can't believe I let her get away with it. I never would have let Ryan get away with it. He is right about my double standard."

"Maybe we should punish her. We have to treat all the kids the same way." Luke thought. It was the truth. "We don't want them to think that we are treating them differently."

Lorelai nodded. "I know. But I also know Rory. Something is bothering her, and when something is bothering Rory, I know that she is beating herself up over it. I've just got to figure out what it is. I don't know how to do that, if she won't talk to me." Lorelai sighed.

"I've got an idea." Luke smiled and reached for Lorelai's hand. "We will tell Rory that she has to come to the diner or the inn after school for the next few weeks, and if she wants to see Dean or Lane it will have to be here at the house under supervision. Maybe if we spend enough time with her, we will be able to figure out what is bothering her." Luke squeezed her hand.

Lorelai smiled. "You are so sneaky. Rory is smart. She is going to know what we are doing."

"So what. We are the parents. We can do what we want." He pulled Lorelai closer to him. "We are in this together."

"I like the sound of that, Mr. Danes." She leaned in and kissed him. Just like that Luke was able to make all her worries go away, if only for a minute. It was exactly what she had always needed. He had that magic in him.

* * *

The next morning, Luke and Lorelai made their way downstairs. Luke had requested that Caesar open the diner up for him so that he could be with Lorelai when she talked to Rory. They had both decided to see if Rory had changed her attitude any before following Luke's plan.

To their surprise, Rory was already up, sitting at the table studying. Actually, Lorelai realized that Rory looked like she had never even gone to sleep. "Rory, hon." Lorelai called out to her daughter.

Rory was lost in her studying and hadn't even realized that her mom and Luke had come into the kitchen.

"Rory." Lorelai said again as she touched Rory's back softly, causing her to jump.

"Mom. God. When did you two get in here?"

Lorelai gave Luke a look to let him know the attitude had not changed, and his plan was still a go. "Good morning beautiful daughter of mine."

Rory rolled her eyes. "Mom." She groaned. "Seriously. I just need a few more minutes. Okay. Can you just get your coffee and leave me be."

Before Lorelai could speak, Luke took over. "Rory. Don't ever talk to your mom that way. We know that you are stressed out about something. We understand that. But that is no reason to be disrespectful." Luke told her calmly.

Lorelai was proud of him. Rory seemed to be listening as she murmured a, "Sorry."

Lorelai nodded. "Rory, hon. Is this about school? Are you having a hard time?" Lorelai closed Rory's book. "You look like you haven't slept all night."

"She didn't." Ruby said as she walked out of the bedroom. "Can I start sleeping upstairs? Rory makes a lot of noise."

"We will think about it." Luke told her. "Why don't you go upstairs and get ready for school? Your mom has some clothes laying on our bed."

"Okay." She looked at Rory. "I think you're in trouble." She gave her sister a look.

"Go." Lorelai swatted at her littlest daughter as she giggled and made her way out of the room. "Was she telling the truth? Did you not sleep at all?"

Rory sighed. "I slept."

"How long?" Luke asked.

Rory shrugged. "A few hours."

"Rory." Lorelai exclaimed. "You have to sleep."

"I told you that I had to study. You knew that before you made me go to Ryan's stupid basketball game."

Lorelai sighed heavily. She really didn't know what to do. She felt like she was getting absolutely nowhere with her daughter.

"Rory, you can tell us anything." Luke reassured her.

Rory rolled her eyes. "I've got to get to school." She stood up from her seat at the table.

"Wait." Lorelai grabbed her hand softly.

"For the next few weeks, after school we want you to come to either the diner or inn to do your homework." Luke told her just as he and Lorelai had discussed.

Rory made a face. She knew what they were up to.

"And if you want to see Dean or Lane they have to come here or to one of those two places." Lorelai added.

Rory sighed. "Fine." With that said she walked to her room.

Luke gave Lorelai a worried look. "Wow. That's not our Rory."

"Yeah. I know." Lorelai said sadly. "She's putting too much pressure on herself. She just needs to relax." Lorelai thought. "I might take her to get a manicure after school today before Friday night dinner."

"You are going to reward bad behavior?" Luke questioned.

"No." Lorelai shook her head. "I'm going to try to get her to talk. The manicure is for me." She looked at her nails. "My nails could use some TLC."

Luke smiled. "What about Ryan and Ruby? How are they going to get to Friday night dinner?"

Lorelai gave him a devilish smile.

"Oh no. Lorelai." Luke realized what she wanted him to do. "No. You promised."

"They have been hounding me Luke." Lorelai admitted. "It's just one."

"I went to that Christmas dinner with you."

"Right." Lorelai made a face. "But they would like you and Jess to come to Friday night dinner every once and a while."

Luke shook his head. "Lorelai. Please."

"Luke. Please." She pouted.

"Oh Lorelai." He made a face. "Don't do that. I hate when you make that face."

"If you do this for me, I will be sure to make it worth your while tonight and tomorrow night and every night this weekend." Lorelai flirted as she kissed his neck.

"You don't play fair."

"I know." She kissed his lips. "I thought that was one of the things you loved about me."

"Amongst many." Luke admitted. "Amongst many."

"So is that a yes?" Lorelai knew it was. She could get Luke to do just about anything with her kiss.

"You know it is."

"Seven." She reminded him.

"I know. I'll be there." He gave her another kiss.

"With all the kids."

"I may let Jess skip if he wants too. He isn't a fan of the Gilmore mansion or Friday night dinners. Your mom always messes up his name. I know she does it on purpose."

"Last time was Jerry." Lorelai remembered.

"At Christmas it was Jett." Luke reminded her. "At least she gets two letters right."

"That's my mother for you." Lorelai shook her head. "I should go make sure Ruby has gotten herself dressed. Knowing her she has probably gone through my closet and is wearing my Bangles t-shirt again."

Luke smiled. Life was always adventurous with the Gilmore Girls.

* * *

Upstairs Lorelai ran into Jess. "Hey Jess. Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure."

"Do you know if there is something going on at school with Rory? She's been acting kind of strange lately. I'm worried about her."

Jess shrugged.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure." Jess told her. Rory hadn't told him anything. "I'm not going to spy for you."

"I'm not asking you to do that." Lorelai said quickly.

"Can I go now?"

"Yes. Go ahead."

Jess sighed and walked downstairs.

"Hey bud, want me to drive you to the bus stop."

"I think I can manage." Jess told him as he headed to the kitchen.

"Hey wait. I need to talk to you about something."

"Not you too." He mumbled.

"What?"

"Nothing." Jess said quickly. "What do you need to talk about?"

"Lorelai asked me to go to Friday night dinner tonight."

"Oh. Great." Jess knew he would have to go too.

"But I was going to give you a pass. You don't have to go."

"What?" Jess was surprised. "You don't want me to go."

"If you want to go, you can go, but I didn't think that you would want to go."

"You are right. I don't."

"Okay." Luke was confused by his nephew's response. He didn't seem excited about the idea of getting out of going to the Gilmore mansion. "You can go, Jess. If you want."

"I don't." Jess said again with a shrug. "I'm guessing that means I'm on my own for dinner."

"I'll get Caesar to cook you something." Luke told him. "I want you home by nine."

"It's a Friday night." Jess protested. "And it is Stars Hollow. How much trouble can I get into?"

"Jess." Luke sighed. He didn't want to have this argument.

"I'm sixteen, Uncle Luke." Jess reminded him.

Luke knew he was too hard on Jess sometimes, but he was trying to protect him. Someone had too. "Fine. Ten."

"I'll take it." Jess grabbed his backpack. "Rory." He called out. "I'll meet you at the bus stop." He looked at his Uncle. "I'll see you, Uncle Luke."

"Have a good day." Luke watched his nephew leave.

Maybe there was something in the water at Chilton.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought! I will update soon!**


	79. Assuming

**Wow! I am so sorry. I am the worst. I am so sorry that it has taken me so long to update the story. I hope you guys are still with me. I also hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and will have a happy New year. My plan is to post again soon. I'm going to spend a good bit of time writing over the next few days.**

 ** **I hope you all enjoy this chapter. It is a pretty long one. Thanks again for the continued support!****

 **A Place to Call Home **

**Chapter 2.6: Assuming**

At the Inn Lorelai was hard at work at the front desk. "Thank you again for staying with us. We hope the next time you are in town, you remember the Independence Inn." Lorelai smiled as she handed the guest her receipt.

"We most definitely will, Lorelai." The woman said as she and her family headed off.

Lorelai smiled. It had been a pretty good day at the Inn. Michel and Mia were both out, and Lorelai was worried it was going to be hectic. But she had been pleasantly surprised.

"Lorelai." Sookie said as she walked into the Inn carrying baby Martha.

"Sookie." Lorelai was even more surprised. "What are you doing here?" She walked towards her best friend, immediately taking Martha out of her hands. "She gets more and more beautiful every single time I see her." Lorelai beamed.

"She gets louder and louder too." Sookie said tiredly. "She has had her shots so the doctor said we could go out and about. This was the only place I wanted to come." Sookie admitted. "I miss this place so much, and I miss you."

"I saw you a few days ago." Lorelai reminded her. "But you are right. This place isn't the same without you."

Both women headed to the couches. "Sarah, will you handle the desk for me while I visit with Sookie?" Lorelai called out to one of her employees.

"Sure thing, Lorelai." Sarah responded quickly.

Lorelai and Sookie both sat down. "She really is the most beautiful thing."

"Thanks. We kind of like her. We are thinking about keeping her." Sookie joked.

"How is Davie doing with her?" Lorelai asked.

"He likes her, but I think he would prefer we left her at the hospital."

"Oh." Lorelai made a face. "I think that is a boy thing. I remember Ryan was like that with Ruby, but he was a little older than Davie is now." Lorelai shrugged. "Rory was the exact opposite. She loved Ruby from the minute she saw her." Lorelai smiled remembering how her girls had always bonded. She then thought about how Rory was behaving, and she made a face.

"What's wrong?" Sookie noticed the look on her face.

"Oh it's nothing. Let's just focus on this beautiful, pink baby girl." Lorelai made googly eyes at the baby. "Yes Martha. You are just the cutest little baby I ever did see…At least in the last seven years." She corrected.

"Oh no. Don't do that. Tell me what's bothering you. I came here for adult interaction and stories. So spill." Sookie told her. "Are you and Luke okay?"

"Yes. Luke and I are fine."

"Are you sure? I know you said that you guys had a fight last week." Sookie remembered.

Lorelai shook her head. "We are fine. Luke is great. He is always great."

"Then what is giving you those frown lines. You are far too pretty for frown lines."

Lorelai rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Martha, your mommy is silly." She smiled and then looked up at Sookie. "It's Rory."

"Rory. What's wrong with Rory? Is she sick?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No. Not that I know of. She seems perfectly healthy. Her attitude on the other hand has been very un-Rory like."

"Rory is the sweetest kid that I know. I only hope that Martha turns out half as great as Rory."

"Well I think she has finally hit her teenage angst stage." Lorelai said sadly. "I thought maybe I had gotten lucky with her. I thought that I was going to get past the 'I hate the world' phase with Rory. I get it enough from Ryan." She talked.

"There has to be a reason why. Rory doesn't seem like I hate the world kind of kid." Sookie reminded her friend.

Lorelai nodded. "I think it has something to do with Chilton."

"Is she being bullied?"

"She said no when I asked. Jess said he hasn't seen anything. I don't think that he would have any reason to lie to me about it."

"Neither would Rory." Sookie reassured her.

Baby Martha cooed.

"See." Sookie pointed. "Martha agrees with me."

Lorelai smiled.

"Do you think the school is too hard for her?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No. Rory is the smartest kid I know. If she were doing badly, she would tell me. She can tell me anything. She knows that. I think that she puts way too much pressure on herself, and it is getting to her." She tried to rationalize it. "Luke thinks we just need to keep her close for the next couple of weeks. She is bound to talk to one of us."

"You can bring her over to my house. She can hang out with me and the kids. I could use the help. Maybe I can get her to talk."

Lorelai looked at baby Martha. "Oh little Martha your mommy has very good ideas."

"Yeah. Yeah." Sookie fist bumped. "I'm a smart mommy."

"I am game for anything that gets Rory out of her funk. I'm ready for my sweet girl to come back." Lorelai admitted. "I'm going to pick her up from school today and take her for a manicure."

"You'll definitely get her to talk to you then."

Lorelai sighed. "It used to be so easy you know. She would tell me everything." Lorelai looked at Martha. "Martha don't ever stop talking to your mommy, and when you think you can't talk to your mommy you can always talk to your Auntie Lorelai. I've always got your back little girl." She smiled down at the baby. "Forever. And ever."

Sookie smiled. "We are so lucky to have you."

"Back at ya." Lorelai said as she maintained her focus on sweet little Martha.

* * *

Ryan was at his locker. He was still pretty excited about the game he had played the day before. He never knew that he would like basketball, but it was actually becoming his favorite sport. He was surprised that he was so good at it. Seriously. He didn't know anyone in his family that was athletically inclined. His grandfather played golf, but that was as athletic as his family got.

"There he is." Trevor said as he closed Ryan's locker.

"Hey. What was that for?" Ryan looked at him surprisingly.

"You took way too many shots last night." Trevor told him.

Ryan shook his head in confusion. "I made most of the shots that I took."

"I think that is his point." Daniel added as he leaned against the lockers.

"I'm supposed to be the leading scorer." Trevor told him. "Everyone knows that."

Ryan raised his eyebrow. "You missed a lot of your shots." He told him. "That's not my fault." Ryan grabbed his bag and started to walk to class.

"I'm talking to you man." Trevor stopped him. "Don't let it happen again."

Ryan was still in disbelief of the way Trevor was acting. They were supposed to be friends. "You've got to be kidding, right. We're a team. I didn't take any shot that I shouldn't have taken. I was on last night. You should be happy that we won."

"I'm the star of our team. Everyone knows that." Trevor told him. "Don't forget it."

Ryan shook his head as Trevor walked away. Daniel stayed behind. "Is he being serious?"

Daniel nodded. "Yep. He is always the leading scorer. He likes it that way."

"It's just a game. I was doing what I was supposed to do." Ryan said with a sigh.

"That's just how he is." Daniel told him as he walked off.

Ryan shook his head. That was the stupidest reason he had ever heard. Basketball was a team sport. A team sport that Ryan was actually good at, and he wasn't going to let Trevor ruin that for him.

* * *

"Rory." Jess stopped Rory from walking into her classroom.

"Jess. I've got to go. I have a test."

"I know that. But the bell hasn't rung yet." Jess reminded her. "We've got a few minutes."

Rory sighed heavily. "Jess. I really don't have time. I need to look over my notes one more time."

"Rory if you don't know the material by now you aren't going to learn it in a few minutes."

"Thanks for the encouragement." Rory groaned and pushed past him.

Jess shook his head. Something was definitely off with her.

"I think she is freaking out because she is failing." Paris surprised Jess.

He turned around. "Rory isn't failing."

"Well not by a normal person's standard. She is doing just fine if she wants to go to a mediocre college and lead a perfectly ordinary life." Paris started as Jess began to walk to his class. A class he also had with Paris.

"Paris." Jess sighed.

"I don't think Chilton is as easy as Rory thought it would be." Paris continued. "I'm sure she will figure it out eventually. She's too smart to be ordinary."

Jess nodded. "Yep."

As they walked to class, awkward silence fell over them.

Paris sighed. "We got an A on that lab report."

"I knew that we would." Jess said simply. "It was a good lab report."

"Jess." Paris stopped him.

Jess stood in front of her waiting for her to speak.

"I'm sorry that I came to the diner for you to change one thing. I could have fixed it myself."

"It is alright, Paris." Jess reassured her.

"It won't happen again." Paris told him. "I promise."

"Don't make promises you know that you can't keep."

"I can keep it."

Jess thought for a moment. "You could break your promise tonight. We could start on the next lab report."

"You are inviting me to the diner?" Paris said with a twinkle in her eyes.

"Sure." Jess shrugged. "I don't have anything else to do. You have to admit that we make a pretty good team." Jess couldn't believe he was saying that, but Paris seemed like she could use a friend. He could use a friend too.

"Alright." She said happily. "I'll be there. What time should I come? Should I bring something?"

"It's a diner. So no."

"My books. I should definitely bring my books." Paris couldn't stop smiling.

"Yeah. That would be good. See you around seven." Jess told her as they made it to their classroom.

Paris couldn't believe that Jess had asked her to spend time with her after school. She felt special. Even if it was nothing, it made her feel good.

* * *

Rory is in a panic looking over her notes before Ms. Gavin walks into the classroom. "Alright students. Please put away your books."

Rory couldn't stop looking at her notes. She was afraid that she was going to forget everything. "Rory." Ms. Gavin leaned down to Rory's level. "Are you okay?"

Rory looked up at her. "I'm fine." She sighed.

"You've got to put your notes away." Ms. Gavin told her.

"Right."

"You know the information, Rory." Ms. Gavin tried to make her feel better. "You have no need to worry."

Rory took a breath. "Thanks Ms. Gavin." She put her notes away. "I'm ready."

Ms. Gavin handed her the test. Rory could do it. She was smart enough.

* * *

Luke walked behind the counter at the diner. The lunch rush had just subsided, and he was relieved. It usually didn't bother him, but he didn't want to be too tired when he went to the Gilmore mansion. Being around those people was the only part he didn't like about his relationship with Lorelai. They were the most judgmental people he had ever met in his entire life.

"Mr. Danes."

He looked up from the register to see Coach Carlson, Ryan's basketball coach. "Hey Coach. You can call me Luke."

The man extended his hand and Luke shook it. Luke was a little nervous. He hoped Ryan wasn't in any kind of trouble.

"Luke." Coach Carlson said.

"What can I get you?"

"I actually wanted to talk to you."

Luke sighed. "Okay."

"Ryan Gilmore belongs to you right."

"Well." That was a complicated question. "His mother and I are in a relationship. He is like my son." Luke said proudly. It was exactly how it felt.

"That's what I thought." Coach Carlson smiled.

"Is he in trouble?" Luke squinted. "What did he do? I'll talk to him."

"Oh he isn't in any trouble." Coach Carlson informed a relieved Luke. "I think Ryan Gilmore is one of the most talented kids I have coached in a long time."

"Really?" Luke felt completely proud of Ryan.

Coach Carlson nodded. "I'm glad that he decided to join the team. I hope he continues to work hard and practice. I think he has a real chance at playing in college."

"That's awesome." Luke smiled. "Really. That's great news. If that's what he wants."

"It is what he should want." Coach Carlson said. "I wanted you to know because I hope that you will talk to him about his talent. I'm going to try, but I've learned that kids don't listen to me like they should."

"I don't know if Ryan is going to listen to me or his mother. He has a little bit of rebellious streak." Luke informed him.

"Oh. I know." Coach Carlson smiled. "But I think Ryan has a real shot here."

"Thank you for letting me know. I thought he was great last night, but I've never been one for basketball. It's good to hear from his actual coach." Luke was so proud of Ryan. He was happy that someone else saw as much potential in Ryan as he did. He couldn't wait to tell Ryan and Lorelai about his talk with the coach.

* * *

Outside of Chilton, Lorelai was waiting outside of her jeep for her daughter. Finally, Rory walked outside carrying way too many books. "Mom." She was surprised to see her mother.

"Hey kid. I got you a coffee." She held it out and shook it gently.

Rory dropped her bag. "Thanks. I could use this today." Rory took the coffee.

Lorelai grabbed her bag. "Wow. They are teaching you way too much at this school." She dramatically put the bag in her jeep.

"Yeah." Rory responded as they both got into the vehicle. "What are you doing here? Did I know you were coming?" Rory asked. She wasn't sure. She had been so focused on school and hadn't been paying much attention to anyone else lately.

Lorelai shook her head. "Nope. It is a surprise." She said happily. "I thought we could go get a manicure."

"Why? I thought you were mad at me." Rory reminded her mom. She hadn't been very nice to her the night before, or even that morning.

"Should I be mad at you?" Lorelai asked as she drove out of Chilton.

Rory thought about how she should answer the question. She had a feeling her mom's surprise trip was about getting her to open up. She should just tell her the truth. "I haven't had the best attitude lately." She admitted.

"Oh really. I haven't noticed." Lorelai said coyly.

Rory let out a soft smile. "I'm sorry about how I've been acting."

"You want to tell me why you've had such the attitude." Lorelai hoped to get her oldest daughter to talk to her.

Rory sighed. "I've just been stressed a little bit."

"Rory." Lorelai said softly. "A little bit?"

"A lot. I guess." Rory sighed.

"Is it Chilton?"

"It is a lot of work." Rory admitted. "But I'll be fine."

"Are you sure that is all that it is?" Lorelai wasn't completely convinced. "Because if there is something else going on with you, all you have to do is tell me. We can figure it out together. Like always, kid."

Rory nodded. "Yeah. I'm fine. I promise." She decided not to tell her about the d's. Rory would fix it before her mom ever had to know. "I'll apologize to Luke too."

"Good idea." Lorelai smiled.

"And I know that I still have to go to the diner or the inn after school for the next few weeks. That's only fair." Rory continued.

Lorelai smiled. Rory seemed more like her old self, but Lorelai was still concerned about her daughter. There had to be something else going on with her daughter. "I agree. I hope that you will stop stressing yourself out. If it is just Chilton, Rory, you are the smartest person I know. You should not stress yourself out. You're sixteen, and I want you to enjoy being sixteen. Okay?"

Rory nodded. "I know. I really am sorry for my bad attitude, mom."

Lorelai touched Rory's hand. "Let's go get our nails done."

"Sounds good." Rory smiled. Maybe some time with her mom was just what she needed.

* * *

When Luke walked into the house, Ruby was dancing her heart out in the living room. "Ruby." He stopped as he saw her. "What are you doing?"

"Dancing." She stopped for a moment to respond, but then continued dancing.

"I can see that."

She stopped again. "Then why did you ask?"

Luke shook his head and sighed. Ruby was too smart for her own good, but she did have a point. He knew from experience that he had to be more specific when speaking to a Gilmore. "You are supposed to be ready to go to your grandparent's house." He pointed at her outfit. She was wearing her ballet attire. Which meant she had come home and changed, but not in the right outfit.

"I want to show them my ballerina outfit."

"No." Luke shook his head. He was not going to make that mistake. "Your mom would have my head."

"That's not true." Ryan said as he walked downstairs. "Mom would find it hilarious."

Luke thought about it. "True. But I'm not letting it happen." He looked at Ruby. "Go change. I think your mom left your red velvet dress on your bed."

"Like a red velvet cake." Ruby said as she licked her lips.

"Exactly." He smiled. "Go change."

"Ugh." She pouted. "You are ruining all of my fun."

"I know." Luke headed to the kitchen behind Ryan. Jess was sitting at the table reading a book.

"That's what he is good at." Jess responded.

Luke gave him a look. Ruby poked out her lip before walking into her room and shut the door.

"You were supposed to take care of that." Luke said to Ryan as he pointed towards Ruby's room.

"I did." He shrugged and opened the refrigerator to grab a drink.

Luke sighed. "What am I going to do with you?"

Ryan shrugged again. "I don't know."

Luke shook his head.

"I can't believe you have to go to the Gilmore's. You hate it there." Ryan snickered.

"I don't hate it."

"Mom must be mad at you."

"I don't hate it. Lorelai is not mad at me." Luke tried to defend himself.

"Whatever." Ryan sat down at the table with Jess.

"I wanted to talk to you about something."

"I can go." Jess said.

"No." Luke said quickly. "You don't have to go."

"Alright." He looked back at his book.

"Are we going to talk about how lucky Jess is because he doesn't have to go to Friday night dinner?"

"I didn't think that he would want to go. Your grandma calls him Jerry." Luke told the two boys. He hated that Emily did that.

"Or Jimmy or Jed or Jeff. Anything but my actual name."

"Not wanting to go has never gotten any of the rest of us out of it." Ryan complained.

Jess shrugged. "You are family. You have to go."

"Alright boys." Luke warned them.

Jess looked at his uncle and then went back to his book.

"Ryan." Luke turned his attention to the boy. "I wanted to talk to you about basketball."

"What about it?" Ryan was curious.

"Your coach talked to me today."

"I didn't do anything wrong." Ryan responded quickly.

"I know. We didn't discuss your behavior."

"Then what did he tell you?" Ryan was really curious now.

"He thinks you have real potential."

"For what?"

"To play in college. He says you have a real talent." Luke told the boy, proudly. "He wants to make sure that you focus and stick with it."

"He really told you that?" Ryan was surprised.

Luke nodded. "Yeah and I want to help you practice."

"Ha." Jess snorted. "Uncle Luke. Seriously. You know nothing about basketball."

"I know enough to help him out."

"Cool." Ryan was happy, but also a little worried. Trevor had been a real jerk at school about the game the previous night. "I can't believe he thinks I'm good enough to play college. I never thought about that before. I just play for fun. It is something to do."

"You are talented. Your coach believes in you. And he isn't the only one. I think you are very talented. I'm proud of you." Luke smiled.

Jess rolled his eyes.

"Thanks, Luke. That means a lot."

"Alright boys." Ruby came out of her room with her dress on backwards. "I'm ready to go."

"I think we should leave her like that. Grandma would hate it. Mom would love it. Win-win for all of us." Ryan joked.

Luke just shook his head. He had never pictured his life exactly like this, but he would never want to change it for anything in the world. He took the little girl into her room to help her change.

"You should come." Ryan told Jess.

Jess shook his head. "I can't."

"Sure you can."

Jess stood up. "Sorry. I've got plans."

"What kind of plans?"

"Studying." Jess walked out of the room.

Ryan wondered if he would be studying with a girl, and if Jess had finally gotten over Scarlett.

* * *

"Wow. Mom, this was a really great idea." Rory held up her nails. They really did look beautiful. "Thanks for taking me today."

"Well thanks for agreeing to go with me. I was a little worried that you would freak out because you have no time to do anything but study."

"Chilton is different than Stars Hollow." Rory told her mother.

"Yes but it isn't so different from the schools that you grew up in. You only went to Stars Hollow for one year."

Rory nodded. That was true. "I know that but most of the kids at Chilton didn't take a year off."

"You didn't take a year off of school, Rory." Lorelai reminded her. "Stars Hollow High is a good school. Do you think I would let Ryan attend if it wasn't a decent school?"

Rory shook her head.

"Of course I wouldn't. Because I want all of my kids to receive the best education possible. I want more for you than a GED and night school when you are thirty." Lorelai said sadly. She had always been disappointed in herself for not finishing school when she got pregnant.

"Mom."

"It is the truth. You, Ryan, and Ruby can do anything that you set your minds too, and I am going to make sure that happens. Understood."

"Understood." Rory smiled. At that moment, she knew it was probably a good time to tell her about the grades. "Mom. I."

Before she could get the words out, there was a tap on the window.

"Oh." Lorelai jumped and let out a giggle when she saw Ryan holding Ruby in his arms, so that she could tap on the window. "You guys scared us." Lorelai said as she hopped out of the jeep.

Rory sighed. Maybe that was her sign that she didn't need to tell her mother. "Yeah." She said as she got out of the car. "You could be in a scary movie."

"Do you think mommy will ever let me watch a scary movie?" Ruby asked.

"Oh you don't want to watch scary movies." Rory told her.

"Yeah Rubes. They are pretty dumb." Ryan added. "Besides mom interrupts all the scary parts to explain why they are so stupid and predictable."

"Actually that is my favorite part about watching scary movies."

"Yeah. Mine too." The three kids headed to the door.

Lorelai gave Luke a quick kiss. "You look very handsome. I like the collar." She touched his collar playfully. "Very sexy."

"I feel like I should be at the bank." Luke quipped.

Lorelai smiled. "I know that you don't want to be here, but I'm really glad that you are."

"Oddly enough me too." He reached for her hand.

"How was Ruby? She always tries to wear her ballerina outfit."

"She was no trouble at all." Luke looked away.

Lorelai giggled. "She has the ballerina outfit on under her dress, doesn't she?" Lorelai could tell by the look on his face.

"I tried so hard." Luke felt defeated.

"That's okay." Lorelai reassured him. "Ruby can be very convincing." They finally made it to the front door.

"What took you so long?" Ryan asked.

"We were making out."

"Ewe. Gross." Ruby made a face.

"You won't think that one day. Trust me." Lorelai told her littlest. "Who is going to knock?"

They all looked at each other. "I think Luke should knock." Ryan said. "He is the new guy."

"I've been here before." Luke reminded the crew.

"Yes. But you aren't a regular." Lorelai poked him.

Luke rolled his eyes and went to knock on the door.

"Oh my God." Emily said as she opened the door. "What took you so long to knock?" Emily surprised them. "The maid told us you were here five minutes ago."

"We were trying to figure out who should knock." Lorelai was honest with her mother.

"Luke." Emily completely ignored Lorelai. "Did we know you were coming?"

"I emailed you, mom. This morning. Remember."

"I don't check my email everyday Lorelai. I need prior notice."

"I gave you prior notice."

"I can leave if you don't want me to stay." Luke suggested. He was okay with that. He didn't want to put anyone out, and he didn't really want to be there anyway.

"Oh no. Of course not. Come in." Emily motioned for everyone to come in. "I'm glad that you are here Luke."

Luke gave Lorelai a look.

"I'm going to make sure that you know how much this means to me." Lorelai whispered.

"Richard. Look who is here."

"Luke. How nice to see you?" Richard shook his hand. "We were beginning to think that the two of you had broken up."

Lorelai grunted. Of course they would go there. "Why would you think that, dad?" She knew she was poking the bear, but nothing they said could ruin how she was feeling. She had the most wonderful afternoon with Rory.

They all sat down. Ruby sat in Luke's lap.

"He never comes around."

"Luke doesn't have to be a part of Friday night dinner." Lorelai informed them.

"If you were married he would have to be." Emily countered.

Lorelai rolled her eyes.

"But Emily, it seems that our daughter isn't interested in ever getting married."

"I've been married." Lorelai said quickly.

"Yes." Richard said softly.

"I need a drink." Lorelai stood up. "Do you need a drink, Luke?"

"Luke probably wants a beer. We don't have beer." Emily quipped.

Lorelai sighed.

"Grandma that is not very nice." Ryan said before Lorelai could react.

"Excuse me." Emily looked at her grandson, shocked that he would say something.

"You shouldn't assume that Luke would only want to drink a beer just because he owns a diner and wears flannel." Ryan defended Luke. "You know what they say about assuming." Ryan smiled.

"Ryan." Lorelai warned, even though she was pretty impressed, as was Luke.

"What do they say young man?" Richard folded his arms.

"Oh nothing, dad." Lorelai intervened. "Just that you are assuming."

"I didn't mean anything by thinking that Luke would want a beer. He seems like a beer guy."

"What does a beer guy seem like, grandma?" Ryan wouldn't let it go.

"Lorelai." Richard looked at his daughter.

"I like beer." Luke was now intervening. "But I will also take whiskey." He informed them. "And as for the marriage thing, Lorelai and I both decided that it would be best to wait until we have lived together for a while and parented together. It is important, and I think that it will be key to a successful marriage." He smiled at Lorelai, and she smiled back and mouthed a simple thank you.

Emily and Richard both seemed okay with that response.

Ryan smiled. It was nice to have Luke at Friday night dinner. He would be okay if he joined them every single week.

* * *

Jess and Paris were at the diner. They hadn't talked much since Paris arrived. She was more concerned about her homework and studying.

Jess stood up and walked away from the table.

Paris looked up from her book and wondered where he was going.

He quickly came back to the table, carrying a plate. "Here." He handed it to her.

"Macaroni and cheese." Paris smiled, happily. "I love mac and cheese."

"I know." Jess smiled.

"I don't remember telling you that."

"You said that you never get to eat it." Jess told her. "It was probably during one of your tirades."

"I don't have tirades."

Jess nodded. "Oh yes you do. On the regular."

Paris smiled and then took a bite of the food in front of her. "This is delicious."

"I know."

"Thank you." Paris was happy. Something that didn't seem to happen very often, but she knew that there was no way that Jess would ever like her like that. But she was happy to have a friend that seemed to get her.

"I thought we could use a little bit of a break."

"Well. Well. Well."

Jess looked up to see Trevor and Scarlett standing in front of them. "Hi Jess." Scarlett said softly.

"Hi Scarlett."

"Don't talk to my girlfriend."

"Why not?" Jess stood up. "Afraid I will be able to steal her back."

"Not likely." Trevor scowled.

"Come on, Trevor. I told you we should go somewhere else."

"No Scarlett. We can eat wherever we want to eat. And I want to eat here."

"Fine." Jess rolled his eyes. "It is a free country."

"Yeah. And I have hot girl on my arm."

"I'm sure she loves being called a hot girl. That is so respectful."

"And you would know."

"Jess is really respectful." Paris chimed in. "The most respectful guy I know."

"You really traded down." Trevor pointed at Paris.

"Don't talk about Paris that way."

"Or what?" Trevor bowed up.

"Or I'll kick your ass."

"Well you probably can't do any better."

Jess went to hit him.

"Jess." Paris grabbed his arm. "He isn't worth it. Let's just get our stuff and go."

"Good idea." Trevor scowled.

Jess dropped his fist. "Sure." Jess helped Paris gather their things.

"I would have kicked your ass." Trevor yelled at them as they walked out of the diner.

"I hate that guy." Jess sighed.

"I can tell." Paris touched his shoulder. "Scarlett was your girlfriend?" Paris figured.

"Yeah."

"And now she is dating that guy."

"That about sums it up."

They headed to the bench under the gazebo and sat down. "Thanks for stopping me."

"I don't want you to get into trouble."

"Me either." Jess thought about his uncle. He didn't want to disappoint him once again. "That guy is such a jerk."

"I could tell."

Jess sighed. "I don't even know what she sees in him."

"Girls tend to like jerks." Paris informed him. "That's just how it is. Bad boys are totally in."

"I thought I would be considered a bad boy."

"A little." Paris smiled. "But there is definitely some good in you. I don't see any good in that other guy. He is a total dick."

Jess looked at her. "You really see some good in me?"

Paris nodded. "Yes. You definitely have some good in you." Paris paused for a moment. "Unlike my father."

"What's wrong with your dad?"

"Besides the fact that he is never around. If I didn't have his eyes, I would forget what he looked like." Paris told him. She had never told anyone what she was about to tell Jess. She wasn't even sure why she felt comfortable telling him. "He cheated on my mom with several different people. It has to be because he has a lot of money because my father is not an attractive man. He is actually pretty ugly." Paris smiled. "My mom is divorcing him. I'm pretty sure she has already started dating some old guy with money. It is such a stupid mess."

"I'm sorry, Paris. I didn't know."

"I didn't want anyone to know." Paris told him. "I don't even know why I am telling you all of this."

"I won't say anything to anyone." Jess promised.

"I didn't think that you would."

Jess looked at his watch. "I should probably go."

"Yeah. Me too." Paris stood up. "Thanks for a fun night, Jess."

"We will do it again."

"Good." Paris smiled happily.

"I'll walk you to your car."

"Thanks, Jess."

* * *

Later that night, Rory was in her room. She opened her computer and visited the Chilton website to view her grades. She logged in and took a breath. A smile crossed her face. She had made an A on her test. "Thank God." She whispered. She didn't want to wake her sister up. Maybe she was back on track. She would have no reason to worry anyone about the D's that she had received.

* * *

Upstairs Luke and Lorelai were in bed. Lorelai was wrapped in his arms. "Thanks for going to Friday night dinner. You made it more bearable."

"I don't know how you do it every single Friday."

"A lot of alcohol is involved." Lorelai kissed him.

"You never did tell me, how did things go with Rory?"

"We had a lot of fun."

"Did she talk to you?" Luke asked.

"A little but not much. She's stressed, but she didn't give me the exact reason. But she seemed to enjoy the afternoon. Maybe her attitude is on the mend."

"I hope so." Luke held Lorelai tight. "Oh I almost forgot. I have some good news."

"We won the lottery and can retire to the Bahamas." Lorelai joked.

"Ryan's coach came to talk to me today."

"His basketball coach?" Lorelai wondered.

"Yes."

"Is Ryan in trouble?"

Luke shook his head. "No. The opposite. His coach thinks he has real potential. He thinks he could play in college if he works at it."

"Are you sure he has the right Ryan? Gilmores are not known to be athletic."

"He must get it from me." Luke joked. "I was pretty good."

"You didn't play basketball." Lorelai reminded him.

"No but I was athletic."

"Then he did get it from you." Lorelai kissed him. Luke smiled. He was right where he wanted to be. They both were.

* * *

 **I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Let me know what you thought!**


	80. Operation Surprise

**Happy New Year! I hope you guys have a wonderful year. Thanks again for all the support you have showed me over the last year. I'm glad that you are all still interested in the story. We have a long way to go!**

 ** **I hope you all enjoy this chapter!****

 **A Place to Call Home **

**Chapter 2.7: Operation Surprise**

Two weeks had passed and it was officially Valentine's Day in Stars Hollow. Luke was on the phone. "No. Why are you calling me today? Now? On Valentine's Day?" Luke said quietly but angrily. "I made these reservations weeks ago. Great. I don't need the reservations in two weeks. I need them tonight. Fine. Thanks a lot." Luke hung up the phone. "Damn it."

"Who peed in your cheerios?" Rory asked as she came out of her room.

Luke gave her a look.

"You seem mad."

"I'm not mad." Luke said quickly.

"Are you sure? You seem a little mad."

"The day is not going as I expected." Luke answered without giving anything away.

"It just started." Rory responded.

Luke shook his head. He was always a step behind the Gilmore's.

"Hey." Lorelai said as she walked into the kitchen.

"Coffee." Luke handed her a cup.

"You are my hero." She gave him a quick kiss. "Thanks for letting me sleep in, but I do have to go into work today. Valentine's Day."

"Yes. That's right." Luke acted like he had forgotten. "Valentine's Day."

"Yes. We will be busy."

"Are you two doing anything?" Rory asked as she grabbed herself a cup of coffee and sat down at the table.

Lorelai looked at Luke. "I don't think so." She smiled. She was okay with that. "Luke isn't big on Valentine's Day."

"It isn't that I'm not big on it." Luke responded, trying to defend himself. "I think Valentine's Day is a great holiday."

"Luke. How did you keep a straight face saying that?" She giggled.

"I thought we agreed that we wanted a nice quiet night at home."

"You are right. That is what we agreed on. I'm fine with it. We can bake Valentine's Day cookies with Ruby. She loves that."

"That sounds like the perfect night to me." Luke lied. He had plans. Big plans for the two of them. If he could find another reservation somewhere else.

Rory gave Luke a look. She had a feeling that he was lying. He was acting way too weird. "I can help you make cookies." Rory offered.

"Actually." Lorelai sat down next to her daughter. "We were thinking that you and Dean could hangout."

"Here?" Rory questioned. That was the only way she had been able to see Dean over the last two weeks.

"Wherever you want." Luke answered. "As long as you are home by 9."

That was an earlier curfew than normal, but Rory would take it. "Thanks."

"We think that your attitude has been a lot better." Lorelai touched Rory's shoulder.

"Just make sure that it stays that way." Luke told her, being as fatherly as possible.

Rory smiled. She was thrilled to have some time alone with Dean outside of the house. "I've got to go call Dean." She grabbed the phone and headed to her room.

"That went well." Lorelai said as Luke sat beside her at the table.

"She has gone back to our sweet Rory." Luke had been surprise by the quick change in her attitude. He was impressed.

"I still think that something is going on with her." Lorelai's mommy sense had kicked in. "There was a reason that she was acting like that, and it wasn't just stress."

"I say we drop it." Luke was happy to have her back to her normal self. "She seems fine."

"Yeah." Lorelai sighed. She wanted Rory to tell her what was bothering her.

"She's fine, Lorelai." Luke reached for hand. "I think will do her some good to have sometime outside of our watchful eyes."

"Yeah. You're right. I'm just being a nervous mom."

Luke leaned over and kissed her.

"Even on the day of love, I don't want to see that." Jess said as he entered the kitchen with his backpack in tow.

"Where are you going?" Luke said as he pulled away from Lorelai.

"Chilton." Jess said quickly as he grabbed a banana.

"It is Saturday, kid." Lorelai reminded him. "Chilton is closed."

"They open the school on Saturdays so that kids can meet up to study." Jess told them as he started to walk out of the kitchen.

"Really?" Luke wasn't convinced. "Will there be supervision?"

"What do you think that I'll do at school?" Jess crossed his arms.

Luke looked at Lorelai for a little assistance. "We don't want you to be at that big school all by yourself. I've only been a few times and it scares the hell out of me when there are hundreds of people there."

"I'm really going to study." Jess told them. "I know you don't think that I am. I can call you from Chilton if you don't trust me."

"We trust you." Luke said quickly.

"Really?" Jess wasn't convinced.

Luke nodded.

"Of course we trust you." Lorelai answered.

"Cool. I've got to go."

"Jess." Luke said softly.

"By the way." Jess turned back around. "Each teacher has to take a turn supervising the school on Saturday. You can ask Rory if you don't believe me."

"We believe you."

"I can drive you." Luke offered.

"If you will finally let me leave, I won't miss the bus."

"I just thought I would offer." Luke defended himself.

"I can take the bus." Jess sighed. "Can I go?"

"Sure." Luke said. Jess turned around. "Wait." Luke stopped him.

Jess dropped his head. He was never going to catch the bus.

"Who are you going to be with?" Luke thought that was an important question. Lorelai gave him a thumbs up. She was impressed with his parenting skills.

Jess turned back around. "Paris. We are working on a project."

"Does Rory have the same project?" Lorelai asked.

Jess shook his head. He thought the third degree was never going to end. "No. She isn't in my biology class."

"Okay."

"Can I go or is there anything else the two of you need to know?" Jess said sarcastically.

"Go ahead." Luke told him.

Jess quickly left the room. Luke looked over at Lorelai. "Do you really think that he is going to go to Chilton? It is Saturday. Jess doesn't study on a Saturday. He barely studies on a Wednesday."

"Maybe Chilton has changed him for the better."

"Do you think he likes Paris?" Luke wondered.

"Ha." Lorelai chuckled. "No."

"I think she likes him. She came to the diner that time." Luke remembered.

Lorelai shook her head. "Paris is all about studying and getting into an Ivy League school. I can assure you that Paris isn't interested in having a relationship."

"It would be okay if she were." Luke thought. "Jess has been pretty down since Scarlett broke up with him. Maybe having a girlfriend will be good for him."

"Not Paris." Lorelai stood up. "Trust me on that one." She poured herself some more coffee as Ryan walked into the kitchen. "Hey there by first born son."

"I'm your only born son." Ryan reminded her.

"You look tired." She ruffled his hair.

"He should be after that game last night." Luke chimed in. "That was a hell of a game. You played even better than the last three times."

"Thanks, Luke." Ryan smiled. He had been playing well after what his coach had told Luke. If the coach thought he was that good, he wanted to be that good.

"I was pretty impressed." Lorelai smiled.

"Mom you still aren't sure what sport I am even playing."

"I know what you are playing. Something with the word ball in it." Lorelai laughed.

Luke stood up and rubbed her shoulders. "She only had to ask me a couple of times what was going on. That's an improvement."

"I still can't believe you are athletic. Blows my mind every time." Lorelai told her son. "You must have been switched at birth. Maybe you are Tiger Woods kid."

Both guys shook their heads.

"What?"

"He plays golf." Luke couldn't stop laughing.

"I was close. He plays a sport."

"And we share a striking resemblance." Ryan joked.

"You know who was really surprised by your athletic ability?"

"Grandma and Grandpa." Ryan already knew the answer. "I still can't believe that they came to my game last night."

"My mother is going to make sure that we do not get out of Friday night dinner." Lorelai told them. "If I were in the hospital we would still have to have Friday night dinner."

"They seemed to enjoy themselves." Ryan thought.

"Oh yes. Mom only complained a thousand times about having to sit on the bleachers." Lorelai laughed. "It was really funny. I hope you have more games that fall on Friday nights. Made my whole week."

"Mine too, mom." Ryan grabbed a pop tart.

"I can make you breakfast." Luke told him.

"This is the best breakfast. Besides I have got to go."

"Where are you going?" Lorelai asked.

"I'm hanging out with Lane and also going to the gym to practice."

"Sounds like fun. No Valentine's Day plans?"

"Nope. See ya." He gave his mom a kiss on the cheek. "Bye Luke."

"Bye Ryan."

Lorelai looked at Luke. "He was in a good mood."

"I think he was happy about the game last night."

"I think he was most happy about not having to have dinner with my parents." Lorelai nodded. "You know that is true."

"They are something else."

"They are a bucket of laughs." Lorelai chuckled.

"Good morning." Ruby popped out of her room holding two separate cards. "I have preseeeents." She said happily.

"Ooh yay. We love preseeeents." Lorelai mimicked her daughter's excitement.

"Don't be that excited." Ruby told her. "It's not diamonds or anything."

"I bet it is close." Luke added.

Ruby gave him a look. "I'd have to rob a bank to buy you diamonds. I'm just a kid. Maybe when I'm ten."

"She has been around you way too much." Luke whispered.

"There is no hope for her." Lorelai held out her hands. "I bet whatever you have is better than diamonds."

"Alright." Ruby handed them her cards.

"Oh wow. Ruby." They had hearts and each card said I love you on it. "These are the best."

Luke couldn't stop smiling Ruby. He bent down so that he could give her a hug. "This is the best Valentine's Day gift I have ever gotten."

"You have gotten much in your life." She said with her hands on her hips.

Luke shook his head. This one was going to be trouble one day. He could already predict the future.

"Really. Ruby. We love these." Lorelai gave her daughter a hug. "How about you spend the day at the Inn with me?"

"Nope." She said quickly. "I'm going with Luke to the diner. It has already been decided."

"When was it decided? Who decided it?"

Ruby pointed at Luke. "The two of us. You weren't included in the discussion."

"Why not?"

"I like spending the day at the diner better than the Inn."

"That's not true. You like to play in our empty rooms. Sometimes you even taken a nap."

Ruby shook her head. "I don't really like taking naps, mommy. Please. Can I go to Luke's?"

Lorelai nodded. "Sure. Since it is already okay with Luke."

"I love having her with me."

"Okay." Lorelai kissed Ruby's head and then gave Luke a quick kiss. "I will see you both later. I've got to finish getting ready for work."

"Okay. Bye." Ruby waited until her mom was out of sight. "I don't think she has any idea what we have planned."

"Me either." Luke said. Although he was worried that it was all ruined because he had lost his reservations at the fancy restaurant with dressy dress code.

"Operation surprise is underway." Ruby said excitedly.

* * *

"I can't believe you talked me into this." Lane said to Ryan as she watched him shoot layups at the gym.

"I won't be very long." Ryan said in-between shots. "Promise."

"You owe me a chocolate bar." Lane told him. "A big one."

"Will we have to disguise it?" Ryan knew how it worked if Mrs. Kim was involved.

"Of course."

"That's what I thought." Ryan shot again and made it again.

"Wow. You really are good." Lane couldn't believe it.

"You would know that if you came to any of my games." Ryan stopped shooting.

"I would love to come to your games, but Mama Kim thinks basketball is of the devil."

"Mama Kim thinks everything is of the devil."

Lane shrugged. "That's my life."

Ryan started shooting again. "You could rebound for me." He said hopeful.

Lane stood up. "Sure. Why not. But don't make me run. I don't run."

"Understood." Ryan continued to shoot, and Lane struggled to rebound. Ryan laughed at her.

"Should have known that you would be here."

Ryan turned around to see Trevor and Daniel walking into the gym.

Ryan sighed. Trevor had continued to give him a hard time over the past few weeks because Ryan did not do what Trevor insisted that he do.

"Trying to show me up as usual."

"Ryan is just good." Lane defended her friend.

Trevor rolled his eyes. "I'm the star of the team. That's how it has always been."

"I'm not trying to be the star of the team." Ryan told him, honestly. "I just want to play basketball. It is fun to me. It is just a game."

"It is not just a game to some of us." Trevor took the ball away from Ryan. "Basketball is my whole life."

"That's sad." Lane quipped.

"Give me the ball back." Ryan was beginning to get sick of Trevor. He was realizing that they were not friends after all.

"I'll play you." Trevor dribbled the ball around Ryan. "Prove to you once for all who is the better player."

"Come on, Ryan. You don't have anything to prove to him." Lane told her friend.

"Having your girlfriend defend you. That's real nice."

"I'm not his girlfriend." Lane responded quickly.

"Come on, Ryan. Are you chicken?"

Ryan took the ball away from Trevor. "You are on." Ryan dribbled the ball behind his back. "Let's do this."

Lane bit her bottom lip. This wasn't going to end well.

* * *

"Hey." Jess said to Paris as he walked into the library.

"You are late."

"I'm five minutes late." Jess sat his stuff down on the table.

"Five minutes that you took away from my future."

Jess shook his head. He could never win with Paris. "I'll try to do better."

"You always say that."

"I know." Jess sat down. "We should get started."

"Yes we should." Paris joined him at the table.

"Hey Paris." He looked up from his textbook.

"Yes." Paris gave him a look.

"Happy Valentine's Day." He slid her a donut. "I figured we both needed to eat."

Paris smiled. She couldn't believe that Jess Mariano was being so nice to her. Boys weren't usually nice to her. "Thanks. Happy Valentine's Day. Let's get to work."

"Aye Aye Captain." Jess joked and both kids began to focus on their work.

* * *

Luke was on the phone at the diner. Ruby was watching him. "Yes I know what today is. That's why I made a reservation way before today, but somehow the stupid restaurant cancelled it. Yes. Thanks for nothing." Luke hung up.

"Did you fail again?" Ruby asked.

"I did not fail." Luke sighed.

Ruby put her hands on her hips. "Did you get the rezorvaition?" She asked.

"No." Luke sounded defeated.

"Then it seems like you failed."

"I don't know what I am going to do." Luke slumped onto the counter. "I wanted tonight to be special for your mommy."

"Luuuke." Ruby reached for his hand. "Mommy will be happy just to spend time with you."

Luke smiled. He loved Ruby more and more every single day. He couldn't remember what his life was like before Lorelai and the kids. "I know but I would really like to do something nice for her."

"Because she won't be expecting it."

"Exactly. That's what you do when you love someone."

"You know, I love Davey." Ruby smiled. "I'm going to marry him one day."

"Really?" Luke raised an eyebrow.

"Yes. He is the Luke to my Lorelai." She smiled happily.

Luke shook his head. "You can't have a boyfriend until your fifty." Luke was only kidding a little bit.

"Luke that is a long time."

"Not long enough."

The bell above the door rang and Rachel entered the diner. "Hey guys." She joined Ruby at the counter.

"Rachel." Ruby smiled. She liked Rachel. "Where is Artie?" She liked Artie the most.

"He is with Babette. I needed some mommy time."

"You can help us." Ruby started.

"No. Ruby. It is okay." Luke stopped her. He thought it might be weird for Rachel to hear about his plans for Lorelai.

"Luke, she can help us." Ruby pleaded. "Please let me tell her."

"Yeah. Luke. Let her tell me." Rachel pleaded with the same tone as Ruby.

Luke motioned for Ruby to tell her. Ruby began to explain to Rachel that Luke had tricked her mommy into thinking they were staying home for the night, but in reality he had planned to take her to a fancy restaurant, take her around town in a carriage, and spend some alone time together. Ruby added that she had no idea what they were going to do during their alone time. Maybe they would play dolls or cards or something.

"Or something." Rachel couldn't help but laugh at how red Luke's face had turned. "I think I can help you." Rachel turned to Luke. "You can close the diner early and do something special for her here."

"No. Rachel."

"I can help." Rachel seemed excited about it.

"No. You don't have to do that." Luke thought it might be weird for her. And maybe also a little weird for him.

"I want to help." Rachel reassured him. "You and Lorelai deserve a fun night, and since my love life has taken a very deep nose dive, I would like to help."

"Please, Luke." Ruby begged. "I want mommy to have a special night. She deserves it."

"Okay." Luke also wanted her to have a very special night, and he could use all the help he could get, especially from people who were over the age of seven.

"Yes." Rachel gave Ruby a high five.

"Let's get to work."

Sookie walked into the diner with Davey.

"Sookie." Ruby jumped down from her seat. "You have to help us."

"Help with what?" Sookie asked.

"Me too." Davey exclaimed.

"Operation surprise my mommy!" Ruby told her.

"You bet." Sookie was in.

"What about Martha?" Luke asked. "Don't you have to take care of her?"

"Jackson has her for the day." Sookie was happy to have a little time alone with Davey. "Davey and I can help. Right, Davey?"

"Right!" Davey smiled.

"This is going to be perfect." Ruby jumped up and down. "Mommy is going to be so excited."

* * *

Mia walked up to the front desk humming. "Mia. You are so cheerful." Lorelai stated.

"It's Valentine's Day. It always makes me happy." Mia pointed at Lorelai. "What does Luke have planned for you tonight?"

Lorelai shrugged. "We aren't doing anything."

"Really?" Mia was a little surprised.

"Luke isn't big on Valentine's Day." Lorelai said sadly. She didn't realize that it had bothered her that much until now.

Mia gave her a look. "I'm sure he has something planned."

"Nope. Nothing." Lorelai was sure of that.

"Well in my experience it does not matter how you spend Valentine's Day as long as you spend it together." Mia gave her some sage advice.

"Thanks, Mia."

Mia always knew how to make Lorelai feel better about things. She gave Lorelai advice that she always wanted Emily to give her when she was growing up.

Mia smiled. She knew that Luke had something planned. She loved that Lorelai was going to be surprised. Lorelai deserved to be surprised and feel special. Because she was one of the most special people Mia had ever met.

* * *

Ryan shot the ball and scored. "Yes." Ryan was proud of himself.

"That's it, Trevor." Lane started. "Ryan won. Fair and square. He is better than you."

"Lane." Ryan stopped her. "I'm not trying to be better than anyone. I like playing basketball." Ryan didn't understand why everything had to be one big competition. "I thought we were friends."

"You cheated." Trevor threw the ball in the air. "You had to cheat. That's the only way that you could beat me."

"How could I have cheated?" Ryan was even more confused.

"He didn't cheat, you big jerk." Lane was upset.

"You are going to pay if you don't quit the team." Trevor told him.

Ryan rolled his eyes. "That's ridiculous. I'm not quitting the team."

"Then you are going to pay."

Ryan looked at Lane. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Let's go, Ryan." Lane suggested. "He is a sore loser."

"I'm not a loser. I'm a winner." Trevor threw the ball at Ryan.

"Come on, Trevor. Get over it already." Daniel told his friend.

"Shut up, Daniel. You are either on my side or against me." Trevor told him. "Let's get out of here."

Daniel looked at Ryan.

"Daniel." Trevor yelled as he began walking out of the gym.

"See ya, Ryan." Daniel followed Trevor out of the gym.

"Ryan." Lane touched his shoulder. "You've got to tell someone what just happened."

Ryan shook his head. "No. He is just being a jerk."

"He threatened you."

"He isn't going to do anything." Ryan was sure of that. "He is just running his mouth. It is no big deal."

"It is a huge deal. That guy is a creep." Lane was worried. "You should tell your mom."

"No." Ryan said sternly. "I'm not telling my mom. There is nothing to tell her. And you aren't either."

"Fine." Lane said defeated but it didn't mean that she wasn't worried about Ryan. She would have to keep an eye out for him.

"Let's go. I'm tired of practicing."

"Okay. I'm tired of watching." Lane laughed.

* * *

"I can't believe that we are actually getting to spend time together without Luke or your mom watching." Dean said as he enjoyed a dessert with Rory at Weston's Bakery.

"I know. Me either. It is nice to be away from Luke's prying eyes." Rory admitted.

"He is super overprotected." Dean found it hard to believe. "Even though he isn't our dad. He sure acts like it."

"Yeah. I know." Rory said happily. "I like that about Luke. He is there for us even though he doesn't have to be." She knew how lucky they were to have him.

"I've missed you." He leaned across the table and gave her a quick kiss.

"I've missed you too, Dean."

"How's school?" Dean asked.

Rory thought about it for a moment. Dean was the only person that she had talked to about school. "It's going a little better. I've made A's on my last two tests."

"That's awesome. I knew you were worried over nothing."

"It wasn't nothing." Rory corrected. "I'll have to continue making A's to pull those D's up."

"If anyone can do it, I know that it is you." Dean held her hand. "I can help you."

"Thanks, Dean. You are the best." She looked down at her pie. "And so is this pie."

"I know you love pie." Dean smiled.

"That I do."

* * *

"I hope my uncle doesn't call Chilton to check up on me. He will swear I lied to him." Jess said as he and Paris moved their studying to a coffee shop.

"At least someone checks up on you." Paris quipped. "My parents could care less about me."

"How is that situation going?"

"The same." Paris said sadly. "I would expect nothing less."

"I'm sorry your parents suck." Jess told her. "If it makes you feel any better, so do mine."

Paris gave him a look. "You seem to have a lot of people who care about you." She noted.

Jess sighed.

"What's going on?"

"Luke is my uncle."

"I know that. You call him uncle." Paris wasn't stupid. "What's bothering you?"

"It's nothing." He shrugged it off.

"That's not fair. I told you my family problems. You should tell me yours."

Jess sighed again. "When I moved in with my uncle I didn't realize that it was going to be permanent. I hoped that my mom would get her act together. Truth is I don't even know where she is." He shrugged. "She hasn't called in over a year. For all I know she could be dead."

"Don't think like that." Paris shook her head. It wasn't productive. "Do you not like living with Luke?"

"No. I do like living with him. He is great, but he has his own life now. He has Lorelai and the kids. Soon enough, he'll adopt them, and they will be a real family. I don't think that I factor into that equation. You know." Jess admitted. It had been bothering him for a while. Specifically when they moved in with Lorelai and the kids. His uncle hadn't even really talked to him about it. "It is only a matter of time before he realizes that he doesn't have time or room for me. He'll kick me out, and I'll have nowhere to go. It sucks."

Paris didn't know what to say. She doubted Jess' uncle would ever kick him out.

"I can never get comfortable. That's what I have learned about life. Because as soon as you get comfortable, happy even, something happens and snatches it away. I can feel it. I know that is about to happen to me." Jess said sadly.

Paris was surprised that Jess had told her all of this. He wasn't the kind of person to open up to anyone.

"Sorry, Paris. I didn't mean to unload that on you."

"It's okay. I'm glad you did." She told him.

"Really?"

Paris nodded. "Yeah. I have similar feelings about my family. Although I'm never happy with them. I worry about losing our money and not being able to afford my nanny. She is the only person that cares about me. Not my parents. It would suck to lose her."

Jess smiled. "Thanks for listening."

"I owed you one."

"We should get back to work." Jess pointed at his books.

"You are right." Paris could tell that he didn't want to talk about it anymore, and she understood. "We are wasting valuable time."

"True." Jess was glad that he was able to tell someone his worries. He couldn't believe that Paris was the person he chose to tell. She was turning out to be a pretty good friend.

* * *

 **So Jess' secret was finally revealed. Let me know what you thought!**


	81. The Best

**Another installment of my story. I am so glad that you all are still reading and interested in where I am taking the characters we love so much and what I am doing with the characters I have created. Ruby is my favorite too. I try to throw her in the story anywhere that I can.**

 **I am also surprised by Paris and Jess. It just sort of happened. I am not saying they are going to date, but I am happy to see where their friendship goes.**

 **I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2.8: The Best**

Luke couldn't believe how quick Rachel, Sookie, and Ruby had worked to prepare the diner for the evening. Sookie had practically kicked out Luke's customers so that they could have the afternoon to decorate the diner and cook for the big evening.

"Where's Ruby?" Luke asked when he walked downstairs. He didn't see her anywhere.

"Right out there." Rachel pointed to Ruby and Kirk. Kirk was jumping up and down.

"Why is Kirk jumping up and down?" Luke was now the one pointing.

"Probably because Kirk is going to help us."

"No." Luke said quickly. "No." He continuously shook his head.

"We need a maître d'." Sookie explained as she popped her head out of the kitchen.

"No. Absolutely not." Luke told them.

"Luke." Sookie said as she walked further into the diner. "He was the only option."

"There are many options." Luke said sternly. "A tiny dog with a bow tie is a better option than Kirk."

"We will have to try that next year." Sookie joked.

"He obviously said yes." Rachel pointed.

Luke shook his head in disbelief.

"You can't tell him no. You will break his heart." Sookie informed him with a pat on the shoulder.

Luke sighed heavily. "This is exactly why the two of you didn't tell me this idea first." He pointed between the two of them.

"He can do it." Ruby ran into the diner. "Kirk is going to be perfect in the role of the Martin D."

Luke chuckled. "Maître d."

"That's what I said." Ruby shrugged him off.

"Ruby, maybe we should pick someone else." He was pretty skeptical of this decision.

"He already said yes." She said with her hands on her hips. Luke knew that he wasn't going to win this battle. That was perfectly clear to him. "He is going home to get his costume. You can't fire him."

"I'm not paying him." Luke told Rachel and Sookie quickly.

"We didn't offer to pay him." Rachel told him. "Promise." She was smiling. It was nice to see how Luke was with Ruby. He was definitely a different person from when she knew him all those years ago.

Luke gave Ruby a knowing look. "Well." She gave him an innocent smile.

"Ruby." Luke warned.

"He gets to eat free for a week." Ruby informed him of the deal she had negotiated with Kirk. "He would have done it for free, but my grandma always tells us that good help is hard to find and very expensive."

"Oh." Luke shook his head. Emily Gilmore. He thought.

"You're the best, Luke." Ruby hugged him. Luke couldn't resist. "Besides Davey and I are going to help him."

Luke gave her another look and then looked over at Sookie. The plan was for Sookie to take Ruby and Davey home before Lorelai arrived at the diner.

"Well." Sookie tried to give him her best innocent face.

"Sookie."

"I told them they could stay and help for a little bit. I'll take them both with me after we have served the first few courses."

"How many courses?"

Sookie shrugged. "That's my cue." Sookie walked back into the kitchen when one of her timers went off.

"Please, Luke." Ruby begged. She really wanted to be a part of the special night.

"Alright. For an hour." Luke rubbed her forehead.

"Yes." Ruby smiled happily "Come on Davey. Let's go get ready."

"Okay, Ruby." Davey followed the girl upstairs.

Luke shook his head. Rachel gave him a sympathetic look. "You are going to have your hands very full with that one."

"Good." Was Luke's first response. "As long as she is my life, I can handle the rest." Luke smiled. "Thanks again for helping with this."

"I'm happy to help." Rachel reassured him. "Lorelai is one lucky girl."

"I'm a lucky man." He couldn't wait for Lorelai to get there and see what they had done. He hoped that she was surprised and that it all made her happy.

* * *

Trevor and Daniel were walking through the town square. Daniel couldn't help the nauseating feeling he had in the pit of his stomach. "I think you should let it go." He finally said.

Trevor stopped walking and focused his attention on Daniel. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Ryan." Daniel said, knowing that Trevor knew exactly what he was talking about.

"I'm not letting it go." Trevor scoffed. "He brought this on himself." He said with a hint of evil in his voice.

Daniel rolled his eyes. He thought the whole thing was ridiculous. "He is good at basketball."

"You are supposed to be on my side. We are best friends." Trevor said plainly, like Daniel had no other option than to agree with him.

"I think we should be happy that we are winning games." Daniel started to walk again, but Trevor stopped him.

"We can win without him." Trevor responded quickly.

"That wasn't the case last year." Daniel reminded him. "We lost. A lot." One of the main reasons was because of Trevor's lack of passing the ball to his teammates, but Daniel didn't dare bring it up.

"You are really beginning to piss me off."

"I don't want you to do anything stupid." Daniel told him.

"I have a plan." Trevor nodded. It was sure to work.

"What kind of plan?" He almost didn't even want to know. It might be better that way.

Trevor smiled. "A plan that ensures Ryan Gilmore get kick off the team." He paused for a moment. "Maybe even out of school."

"What are you going to do?" Daniel knew that whatever it was, probably wasn't good.

"You'll see." Trevor said as he started walking again. Daniel shook his head and followed his friend. As the boys passed the gazebo, Dean came out from his hiding space. Luckily for him, he had been passing by at the exact right time. He wouldn't have thought about listening until he heard Ryan's name. He had to listen then.

Dean sighed. He had to get back to Rory, and they had to warn Ryan before Trevor did something stupid.

* * *

At the Inn, Lorelai was straightening the lobby when Mia walked in carrying a package. "Mia. What's that?" Lorelai pointed. "Do you have a gentleman caller?" She raised her eyebrow and playfully raised her shoulders.

"No." Mia smiled happily. "But you do." She handed the box to a surprise Lorelai.

"Is this from Luke?" Her voice sounded like a little girl.

"I guess you are going to need to read the card." Mia didn't want to give anything away.

Lorelai opened the card and a bigger smile crept across her face.

" _If you don't mind ditching our plans of a quiet evening at home, please change into what is in the box and meet me in front of the Inn at 6 p.m. P.S. There is more than one choice in the box. I know how you like to have options. I love you." Luke's voice._

"You knew?" She accused Mia. Of course Mia's face couldn't hide the truth. She nodded.

"And you let me babble on."

"Of course. That was half the fun."

"Wow!" Lorelai couldn't believe Luke was being so romantic. "Do you know what he has planned?"

"A lady never tells." Mia was having a lot of fun with this. "You can go to room 18. Luke packed you a bag."

More surprises. Lorelai couldn't imagine what else Luke had planned. "Wait. Are we staying here tonight? What about the kids?"

"You have nothing to worry about. Everything has been taken care of." Mia was so happy for her.

"I don't even care what he has planned. I already know that this is going to be the very best Valentine's Day I have ever had." Lorelai was beaming.

"I think that was the plan." Mia patted her shoulder. "Enjoy your night. You deserve it."

* * *

Luke stared at the diner. He was in disbelief at how different it looked. The girls had added flowers and table clothes to the tables. Rachel had printed special menus for the occasion. It was incredible what you could do on such short notice.

"Luke."

Luke turned to see Taylor tapping furiously on the diner door. It had been locked to keep customers out for the rest of the day. "Luke. Luke. Open up. Luke."

Luke shook his head.

"I know you can see me. Open up this instant." He demanded.

Ruby walked out of the back of the diner. "I think we should play dead. Maybe he will go away." She suggested.

"Doubtful." Luke touched her hand softly. "Go play with Davey. I'll handle this." Luke told her.

"Good luck." Ruby gave him a thumbs up before disappearing off to the back of the diner.

Luke walked to the door. "What do you want?"

"Open this door." Taylor demanded.

Luke rolled his eyes and reluctantly unlocked the door and opened it.

"Why are you closed?"

"None of your business." Luke said simply.

"It is most certainly my business." Taylor responded. "This is a holiday and not a holiday you should be closed on. The patrons of this good town have nowhere to eat because of you." He waved his finger in Luke's face, receiving another eye roll from Luke. "All of the people who would eat here are now going out of town on Valentine's Day. This means they will probably purchase other things from other stores that they could get from Stars Hollow. You see Luke, you are driving business out of town."

Luke couldn't believe he had said all of those things with a straight face. Some of the things Taylor came up with were out of this world. Only a crazy person could actually come up with them. "That's ridiculous Taylor." He began. "This is not the only place in town to eat. Hell. I usually have less business on Valentine's Day than a regular day because people want to go somewhere fancy." Luke started walking Taylor out of the diner. "I have witnessed a girl breakup with her fiancé because he brought her to my diner on Valentine's Day. So I would say that me closing is probably doing this crazy ass town of lunatics a favor. You are welcome!"

"Luke." Taylor tried to stop him. "It looks pretty fancy in there to me now."

"Goodbye Taylor. Don't come back."

"You are going to wish that you listened to me. You will see." Taylor argued as he realized he was going to get nowhere with Luke.

"I'm sure that I will when hell freezes over and pigs fly and King Kong stops by." Luke walked back into the diner and shuts the door again.

"Luke." Taylor said again.

"Goodbye. We are closed." Luke walked away. Sometimes he wondered why he never moved.

* * *

Rory opened the front door of her house. "Finally." She said as she saw Dean walking up the front steps. "What took you so long?"

"I have something to tell you." Dean felt like he was out of breath. He tried to remember everything that he had heard Trevor and Daniel say in the square.

"You want to breakup." Rory jumped to the wrong conclusion. "Dean. It is Valentine's Day." She exclaimed. "This is the worst day in the entire world to breakup with someone. I am pretty sure that it is against the law to do this."

"I don't want to breakup." Dean said quickly.

"Okay. Are you sure?" Rory needed to be reassured.

"Yes. I don't want to breakup." He reassured her.

"Okay. Then what is wrong?" Rory asked. "Are you sick?"

Dean dropped his head. She was beginning to drive him crazy. "No. I'm not sick."

"Then what is wrong?" She asked again. "You look worried. Did your parents do something to upset you?"

"Rory." He touched her shoulders gently. "Would you stop asking me so many questions?"

"Okay." Rory sighed. "I've been trying to listen this whole time."

Dean walked into Rory's house. "Do you know Trevor and Daniel?"

Rory shrugged. "Sort of but not really. Ryan hangs out with them some. I think they are friends."

Dean shook his head. "They aren't friends."

"They aren't?" Rory was beginning to become confused by Dean.

"I think Trevor is going to do something stupid to Ryan."

"Like what?" Rory had no idea why someone would want to something stupid to Ryan.

"Like get him kicked off of the team or maybe even worse…school."

"Why?" Rory frowned. "That sounds ridiculous. How do you know that?"

"I overheard their conversation." Dean informed her.

"Ryan is a good basketball player." She knew nothing about sports, but she had been told Ryan had real talent.

"I think that is the point. They are pissed about it."

Rory still didn't understand. Boys were really weird about their sports. "We have to tell my brother."

"Yeah. I know."

Rory walked to the door. "Boys are dumb." She paused when she saw the look on his face. "Well. Most boys."

"Thanks for that." He took her hand.

"This is ruining our Valentine's Day."

"As long as I am with you, it doesn't matter." He leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek, making her blush.

* * *

Lorelai was patiently waiting on Luke to arrive at the inn. She was wearing a beautiful red dress that Luke had picked out for her. He had also given her a black dress, but she decided to go with red because of the holiday. She also thought that Luke might prefer the red dress. She was a little nervous. She didn't know why she was nervous. She and Luke had gone on many dates before. This was no different. But she was worried that she wouldn't like what he had planned.

She practiced her fake excited face, and then shook it off. She wouldn't need her fake face. She knew that she was going to be excited no matter what Luke had planned for her.

She was taken by complete surprise again, when Luke arrived in a carriage. "Wow." Lorelai exclaimed as Luke stepped out of the carriage holding a dozen yellow daisies. "You remembered."

Luke nodded and kissed her cheek as he handed her the flowers.

"I don't know how you remembered." She kissed his lips softly. "It was just something I babbled about."

"I try to remember the things you babble about." He touched her cheeks softly.

"Even the things that aren't that important?" She asked.

"Everything you say is important." Luke smirked.

Lorelai shook her head and smelled the flowers. She loved the smell of yellow daisies. "Now we both know you are lying."

"I love you." Luke told her. He had wanted to say those words since he stepped out of the carriage. "I love you so much." He kissed her slowly and then more passionately. They finally pulled apart, both just wanting to go inside the inn to their room. "I have a big night plan."

"You didn't have to plan anything. I am fine with going home and having a quiet night." Lorelai told him, but she really did want to see what he had planned for the evening.

"Really?" Luke teased. He could tell by the look on her face that she didn't want to go home. "You want me to call the whole thing off?"

Lorelai shook her head. "Of course not." She kissed him again. "I can't wait to see what you have planned. I never expected you to do anything. I thought you weren't a fan of Valentine's Day."

"I'm a fan of yours."

Lorelai chuckled. "That is so corny."

"It is the truth." He continued to kiss her. "And we better get going. I want you to know how special you are to me."

"I know. I know." She followed him into the carriage. She knew how lucky she was to have Luke in her life. She never wanted to live a life that didn't have Luke in it. Their love was the love she had been waiting for her entire life. She wished she would have found him sooner.

* * *

"That's crazy." Ryan said to Dean and Rory outside of Westins. "Trevor isn't going to try to do anything to me. He is my friend."

"I think we can both admit that Trevor is not your friend, especially how he acted at the basketball court today." Lane interjected. "That guy is a real jerk."

"Dean heard Trevor talking to Daniel." Rory explained. "He wouldn't make that up."

"That would be crazy." Dean took Ryan's previous words. "I have no reason to lie to you, man." He hoped that Ryan understood that.

Ryan sighed. "It isn't a big deal. There is nothing that he can do."

"He seems to think he can."

"That guy is a real ass." Lane said quickly and nervously.

Rory let out a quick laugh. "Lane."

"It is the truth. I don't like hm." She turned to Ryan. "I think we should tell your mom."

"No way. We have nothing to tell her." Ryan shook the thought away. "I can handle myself."

"Ryan." Rory said in a concerned tone. "Come on."

"No." He said firmly. "I will handle it. No one tells my mom anything." He looked at Rory. "Got it."

Rory sighed. "Fine."

Ryan wasn't sure that he believed her. She tended to butt in where she shouldn't. "I've got to go. Lane are you coming with me."

"You go ahead. My mama will send a search crew for me if I'm not home soon."

"Okay." He knew he shouldn't leave them alone, but he was ready to go to the music store before he had to go home for the night.

Lane turned to Rory and Dean. "We have to look out for him." She told Dean.

Dean nodded. "I agree."

"You two have to make sure that my brother doesn't get kicked off the team or out of school."

"We will take care of it." Dean reassured her.

"I really should get home." Lane told both of them. "We will come up with a plan on Monday."

Dean nodded. Lane walked away. Rory looked at Dean. "I'm really worried about my brother. Maybe I should tell mom and Luke. Ryan will be mad at me, but I am sure that he will get over it. He always does."

"I'll make sure Trevor doesn't do anything stupid." Dean reached for her hand. "Lane and I will take care of it."

"Why do some people have to be so horrible?"

"We can't all be as good as you."

"Dean." Rory sighed.

"It is true, Rory. You are the best." He kissed her cheek. "We have a little time before you have to get home. Do you want to go get some chocolate and eat it all before we go home?" Dean knew the way to her heart.

"Will you let me eat most of it?"

Dean nodded.

"You are too good to me." Rory kissed his cheek. She was worried about her brother, but she had faith in her boyfriend and best friend. They would protect her brother.

* * *

Paris drives her car to the bus stop. "You didn't have to bring me to the bus stop. I could have walked." Jess told her. He had told her many times that he could walk. But she had insisted on driving him.

"I didn't mind. It wasn't like I had anything else to do."

Jess nodded. He was quiet.

"I won't say anything." Paris reassured him. She had a feeling that might be the reason for his silence. "Whatever you tell me will always remain between the two of us."

Jess smiled. "Thanks." He reached for the door handle. "I'm glad that we are friends."

"Friends." Paris repeated. "Me too." She was happy to have him as a friend. It was nice to have someone who understood her. Not many people ever did. Not even Rory.

"See ya, Monday." He told her before getting out of the car. "Happy Valentine's Day."

"See ya." Paris smiled.

Jess walked to the bus. He couldn't believe what a nice time he had with Paris. She wasn't as bad as he had once thought. It felt nice to talk about his problems with someone who understood and wouldn't try to psychoanalyze him.

* * *

Lorelai had been pleasantly surprised by Luke's surprise at the diner. She couldn't believe that Kirk was helping out and Luke was actually letting him. So far he hadn't made any mistakes. She was even impressed with the entertainment. Ruby was dancing and Davey was beating on pots and pans.

"You really have thought of everything."

"I have to admit this was a last minute thing." He told her as he reached for her hand. "I had us reservations at that fancy place you are always talking about."

"The place in Hartford."

"Yes."

"Luke, I don't really like that place."

"But you talk about how good the food was." Luke remembered. "I thought it would be special, but they gave away our reservation."

"Probably because of my parents. They probably took our reservations." She squeezed his hand.

"Really?"

"Yes. That place is the worst at giving away reservations. That is one reason I hate it so much." She moved closer to Luke. "I would much rather be here, at this diner, with you, watching Ruby dance, listening to Sookie break something, probably her bones, and watching Kirk try to figure out how to fold a napkin."

Luke laughed. "That sounds like a bad scene in one of those movies you like to watch."

"It is the perfect scene as long as the two of us are together." She kissed him.

"Small children are here." Kirk yelled across the room as he held his eyes.

"Go home, Kirk." Luke shouted playfully as he kissed Lorelai again. "I think I am ready to go to the inn."

Lorelai nodded. "That is the best idea you have had all day." She then thought about it. "The kids."

"Mia is handling it. We have nothing to worry about." He kissed her again. "I love you, Lorelai Gilmore."

"I love you more, Luke Danes."

Best Valentine's Day ever!

* * *

 **So I added the Taylor scene in when I went back through this chapter. I feel like I don't include him enough. So I hope you all enjoyed his brief appearance.**

 **Let me know what you thought.**


	82. Alleyway

**Sorry for the lack of updates. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. It was supposed to be longer, but I wanted to get something posted.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2.9: Alleyway**

"Are you sure?" Lane said as she and Dean walked down the hall of Stars Hollow High. "You could have misunderstood what Trevor said."

Dean stopped walking. "I know what I heard, Lane. Tonight is the night." He told her again. He had overheard Trevor telling Daniel that they could plant evidence in Ryan's locker that would get him kicked off of the team. Dean never heard them say exactly what it was, but he was sure that it wasn't good. They had been following Trevor around all week, trying to overhear anything that would help them stop Trevor from ruining Ryan's life. "We've got to call, Rory. Remember." Rory wanted to make sure she was involved in whatever plan Dean and Lane came up with. She wanted to protect her brother.

"I think we should go to the principal." Lane had been saying that all week.

"And tell him what, exactly?" Dean had also been repeating those words all week. "We don't know enough."

"We know that Trevor is up to no good. That's all we need to know."

Dean shook his head. He was tired of having this conversation with Lane. "If we don't catch Trevor in the act, he can weasel himself out of it. That's the kind of person that he is. We don't want to make things worse for Ryan."

"I think we should at least tell him what is going on."

Dean shook his head again. "No. Lane we agreed. We would handle this."

Lane sighed. "I think that we are the ones that are going to get in trouble."

"Why are you getting into trouble?" Ryan asked as he innocently joined them in the hallway. Both teenagers froze. "What's wrong?" Ryan asked as he noticed the change in their demeanor. "What are you two up to?"

"Nothing." Dean responded quickly, tapping Lane on the shoulder so that she would do the same.

"Right. Nothing. Nothing at all." Lane repeated nervously. She hated lying to Ryan, but he wouldn't believe them. He was convinced that they were all overreacting about Trevor.

Ryan narrowed his eyes. He wasn't all that convinced but decided to let it go. "Okay. Whatever you say." He really wasn't in the mood to ask questions. He had been studying for a test all week and was pretty tired from his late nights. He was relieved that it was the weekend. "I've got to get to class."

Dean and Lane both stood still.

"Lane, we have the same class." Ryan reminded her. "We usually walk to class together."

"Right." Lane looked at Dean. They obviously weren't finished with their plan. "I need a minute. I've got to get something from my locker." She lied.

"I can wait."

"Oh no. You don't have to wait."

Ryan shook his head and pointed between the two of them. "Something is definitely going on with the two of you, but I'm not worried about it. Just make sure whatever it is, leave me out of it. I don't need to get into any kind of trouble." He informed them as he made his way to class.

Lane turned to Dean. "I think we should call this whole thing off."

"Lane." Dean sighed. "We promised Rory."

"How are we going to stop Trevor?" Lane wasn't sure how that ey would be able to save Ryan.

"We aren't going to stop him."

Lane gave him a look.

"We are going to follow them, see what they do, and take whatever it is out of his locker." Dean let her in on his plan. "I'll call Rory during break."

"She has Friday night dinner."

"I think she plans on skipping."

Lane shook her head. "This is a recipe for complete disaster."

"Everything will be fine." Dean reassured her for the thousandth time. It was important to him because he knew how much it would mean to Rory. He had to protect Ryan. "Trust me." He said as he walked away.

Lane had a really bad feeling, and her feelings weren't usually wrong.

* * *

Ryan was about to walk into class, when Daniel grabbed his arm. "Hey man. Can I talk to you for a minute?" He asked but not really giving Ryan the option to say no.

"I really do need to get to class. I have a test." Ryan tried to get out of it. He hadn't talked to Trevor and Daniel since the incident at the gym and Dean's revelation. He wasn't interested in the drama. His main focus the past week had been to pass his test. His mom was not strict, but she did warn him that he had to have good grades or he could not play basketball. Surprisingly, he really loved playing, and he didn't want anything to hinder his ability to play.

"This won't take long." Daniel told him as he pulled him further to the corner.

"Did Trevor send you here to threaten me again?" Ryan rolled his eyes. Trevor had been a jerk to him during practice and even the game, but he didn't care.

"Trevor didn't send me." Daniel responded. "I wanted to talk to you all on my own." He bit his bottom lip. He wasn't sure how to tell him what he needed to tell him. "I think you should quit the team." That's not what he had intended to tell him. He thought he was ready to tell him the truth about Trevor, but he had chickened out. "Trevor will leave you alone if you quit the team. That's all you have to do."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "I'm not quitting the team." He was beginning to become pissed off with the two of them suggesting that he should quit the team.

The bell rang.

"I've got to get to class. Just leave me alone, okay." He walked past him.

"Ryan." Daniel said softly. He wasn't ready to do what Trevor had planned. He knew it was wrong, but he was too afraid to stop it.

Ryan made his way to class. He just wanted to make a good grade on his test. He couldn't worry about Trevor and Daniel.

* * *

At Chilton, Rory was searching for Jess to ask him to cover for her. Dean had paged her and then she called him to find out that Trevor was going to do something to Ryan's gym locker. She wanted to help Dean and Lane stop it, but she knew that meant skipping Friday night dinner. She knew that she should tell her mom, but she thought they could handle the situation. She just had to figure out how to get away with skipping dinner.

"Jess." Rory said when she saw him coming out of the headmaster's office. "Are you in trouble?"

"Why would you assume that I was in trouble?" Jess smirked. "I'm not always in trouble."

"Well. I mean. I'm sorry." She stuttered. "I didn't mean to assume that you were in trouble. I'm sorry."

Jess chuckled. "I'm kidding, Rory."

"Oh. So you were in trouble?" Rory asked.

"No." Jess shook his head. "It was nothing really." He handed her the paper that Headmaster Charleston had given him as they began walking down the hallway.

Rory read the paper. "You won a writing contest." She was happy for him. She wasn't aware of any competition. "That's really exciting."

"It's not a big deal." Jess acted like it didn't matter. He didn't want anyone making a big deal about it.

"What did you write about?" She was curious.

Jess shrugged. "It doesn't matter. I'd really appreciate if you kept this between the two of us."

Rory was surprised. "You should tell Luke. He would be so proud of you." Rory encouraged him. "Really. He'd probably bake you a cake or something." She always like how excited that Luke got about things they accomplished. It was exactly how her mom acted. It was nice.

Jess shook his head. "Seriously. Rory. It isn't a big deal. My English teacher shouldn't have even entered in the stupid contest. Please. Don't say anything." He hadn't been aware that there was even a contest.

Rory understood. "Sure. I won't say anything." If that is what he wanted, she would keep quiet.

"Thanks." Jess was relieved. He didn't feel like explaining what he had written about. He didn't want anyone to make a big deal about it. "So what's up with you?"

"I need you to cover for me." Rory admitted.

Jess stopped walking. "You need me to cover for you? Why?" Jess was surprised.

"Something came up." Rory didn't want him to know what she was really going to do. "If anyone asks, will you tell them that I had a project to work on at school?"

Jess stared at her, trying his best to read her face. "I don't know, Ror." He started. "What came up?" He asked. He decided it was his job to play the protective "brother" since Ryan wasn't there.

Rory sighed. She knew if she told him, he would want to help out, but she didn't want to involve him. "I want to hang out with Dean."

Jess furrowed his brow. That didn't sound too bad. "Why don't you tell Lorelai? She would get you out of Friday night dinner." Jess was trying to make sense out of Rory needing him to cover for her.

Rory nodded. He was making this harder than she thought he would. "I know that, but I don't want to involve my mom. My grandma is always making her uncomfortable. I figured she could use a break."

Jess wasn't sure that he believed her. She kept looking away from him when she spoke. That was a clear sign that she was lying. Rory never lied. "Rory."

"Please. Jess. Do this for me." She asked him desperately.

Jess thought about it. He could tell that it was important to her. "You promise you aren't doing anything dangerous?" He asked.

Rory sighed. "I'll be with Dean." Technically it was not a lie.

"Okay. If anyone asks, I will say that you are working on a project and will meet your mom at your grandparents."

Rory nodded. "Good. And I will call my grandmother and tell her the project is taking a long time and to tell my mom I will meet her at home."

"Alright. Call me if you need anything." Jess told her. He was still a little worried that Rory was going to get into some kind of trouble, but he had to trust that she knew what she was doing.

"Thanks, Jess." Rory smiled. She was glad to have his help. "And congratulations. I think it is great that you won an award. I'm glad other people recognize how brilliant you are."

"Rory."

"It is true, Jess. You are one of the smartest people I know." She gave him a hug. "I'm going to buy you a cupcake this weekend." She told him.

Jess nodded. "Cool."

* * *

"Ruby." Luke said as he and Ruby built a snowman, coldly. "I think it is time to go back inside."

"Please, Luuuke. You said that we could build a snowman after school." Ruby reminded him as she added the head to the snowman body.

"I didn't realize it would be this cold." Luke shivered.

"It's winter." Ruby said simply.

Luke smiled through his frost bitten lips. "Ruby I think we should go inside. Your mom will—" He paused when he saw Lorelai pulling into the driveway. "See. Your mom is here."

"She loves the snow." Ruby threw a snowball at Luke and laughed.

"Hey you two crazies." Lorelai laughed when she got out of her jeep. "What are you two doing out in the snow? It is pretty cold out here." She was all bundled up. She walked closer to two of her favorite people.

"I've been telling her that for a while now." Luke told her as she leaned over and gently kissed his frozen lips.

"Luke said we could build a snowman when I got out of school."

"I don't think Luke realized that the weather was going to drop." Lorelai picked her daughter up.

"Mommy."

"Come on. Let's go inside." She began walking to the house with her daughter in tow. "We can finish your snowman tomorrow."

"Do you promise?" Ruby asked.

Luke opened the door, and they were all hit with the warmth of their house. "This feels so much better." Luke was relived to be in the house.

"I promise that we will build your snowman if it isn't too cold." Lorelai sat Ruby down.

"Okay. That will do." Ruby began taking her jacket off.

"You need to go get ready to go to grandma and grandpa's house." Lorelai told her little girl.

"I can wait to see them." Ruby hopped off to her room.

"You are freezing." Lorelai told Luke as she touched his face. "You know that you can say no to her."

"I tried." Luke admitted. He began taking off his jacket. "She has that big smile. I can't say no."

"Remember. We have to say no or else she will be a little demon that we won't be able to handle." Lorelai helped him with his gloves.

"I know. But it is so hard."

"You are just a big softy." Lorelai leaned in closer to him. "I find it very sexy."

"You are very warm." He wrapped his arms around her.

"Oh God." Ryan exclaimed as he walked into the house. "You two should get a room."

"Hi kid." Lorelai slowly pulled away from Luke. "You seem like you are in a very chipper mood."

"I'm always in a chipper mood." Ryan wrinkled his nose. Lorelai walked over to the boy and playfully ruffled his hair.

"Hey stop that." He said with a chuckle as he playfully swatted at her.

"How did your test go?" Lorelai asked when she remembered it. She knew how hard he had been studying for it.

"Fine." Ryan told her with a shrug.

"I'm sure that it went better than fine." Luke patted him on the back to show his support.

"Yeah. Sweetie. You studied all week. You were a regular Doogey Howser."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "Yeah."

"Are you okay?" Lorelai asked, sensing that something other than the test was bothering him. "You seem a little distracted. Did something happen at school?"

"No." Ryan said quickly. He thought about telling her about Trevor, but he didn't want to worry her. "Nothing. I'm just frazzled from studying so much this week." He winced after the word frazzled. That was a weird word for him.

"Wow! Frazzled!" Lorelai picked up on it. "That's a new word for you."

"It is all that studying. It made me forget all the words I'm familiar with."

"You should use the word frazzled around your grandmother tonight." Lorelai chuckled.

"Will do." Ryan turned his attention towards Luke. "Are you coming?"

"Not this week." Luke was relieved about that.

"Oh come on. I thought you loved it." Ryan teased.

"Every now and then is enough for me." Luke told him. He understood that most times they meant well, but it was still painful to be around people who were so judgmental.

"Me too, ma." He looked at Lorelai. "I think I'm going to stay with Luke tonight. I think he would appreciate the company."

"Fat chance." Lorelai bopped his nose softly. "Go get your nice clothes on."

"No jeans." He said with a frown.

"As much as I would love a lecture from my mother tonight, I think it is best you ditch the jeans." Lorelai informed him.

"Alright." Ryan said as he walked upstairs to his room.

Lorelai turned towards Luke as they walked to the couch. "Does he seem off to you?"

"I'm sure he is tired. He was up past midnight." They both sat down.

Lorelai thought for a minute. "You are right. I guess we aren't used to seeing him studying so much."

"I think it is because he is serious about basketball. You told him he had to keep his grades up if he wanted to stay on the team." Luke reminded her.

Lorelai shook her head. "I still can't believe my kid is actually good at a sport." She pointed to herself. "That is the craziest thing to me."

"He is pretty talented. Imagine how good he would be if he had been playing his whole life."

Lorelai nodded. "There was no way I would have been able to teach him. And well we both know about Christopher. My dad claims that he was athletic, but I have yet to see the proof." She joked.

Luke laughed. "Have you ever tried a sport? You may have a hidden talent like Ryan."

"Ha. Ha. Ha." She said slowly. "You got jokes."

"I'm being serious. You never know. You can do that pretty impressive leg thing."

"Luke." She blushed.

"I didn't know anyone could get a leg that high. You could be the most athletic person on the planet."

"Trust me, Mister. There is no athletic bone in this body." She kissed his cheek. "If we get home early tonight, maybe you could try that leg thingy."

"It only works when you do it." He flirted.

"Oh. Is that right?" She asked playfully as she kissed him. Luke kissed her back.

"Jeez. Get a room." Jess said as he walked into the house.

"We would if we could." Lorelai told him, receiving an eye roll from Jess.

"How was school?" Luke changed the subject.

"Fine."

"See it is a teenage boy thing." Luke pointed out to Lorelai.

Lorelai looked around Jess. "Where is Rory? Did you leave her at the bus stop making kissy face with Dean?"

"Nope." Jess responded.

Lorelai raised an eye brow. "Oh. Then where is she?"

"She's at Chilton." Jess hoped that she would leave it at that.

"Why? It's Friday."

"Working on a project." Jess hoped that she didn't ask any more questions.

"Did she know about the project this morning?" Lorelai thought it was strange that she hadn't mentioned a project before.

"I don't think so." Jess thought that was probably the appropriate answer.

"We have Friday night dinner." Lorelai was confused. Rory knew that.

"She's gonna meet you there."

"Oh okay."

Jess was relieved that she stopped asking questions. "I'm going to go upstairs now."

"Oh hey Jess wait a minute."

Jess paused and closed his eyes. He just wanted to go upstairs. "What's wrong?"

"I thought maybe the two of us could have dinner tonight."

Jess scrunched his face. "I'm good."

"Come on." Luke stood up. "Caesar is handling the diner tonight."

"Uncle Luke. Do I have a choice?"

Luke shook his head. "I think it will be fun."

Jess gave both adults a look. "Fine." He didn't have a choice.

"Good. You can pick the place."

"Dandy." Jess said as he walked upstairs.

"What are you hoping to accomplish with that?" Lorelai asked him.

"I'm taking a play out of your parenting book. Maybe if it is just the two of us, he will actually open up to me."

"Good luck." Lorelai was sure that he was going to need it.

"Yeah. You too." He chuckled.

"I always need it when Emily Gilmore is involved."

* * *

"Why did you want to meet us here?" Dean asked Rory as they stood in an alley way.

"Yeah Rory. This is scary." Lane added as she looked around, afraid something was going to jump out and get her.

"Come on guys." Rory started. "It isn't even dark yet." She told them. "Besides this isn't scary." She pointed across the way. "We are basically next door to Sookie's house."

"I thought you wanted to meet us here because no one would see you." Dean reminded her.

"Yes that's very true, Dean." Rory smiled at him. "But she isn't home."

"How do you know that?" Lane asked. She was so afraid of getting caught. She knew all of this was a very bad idea. She kept tapping her fingers together nervously.

"She is visiting Jackson's parents this week." Rory told them. "I'm nervous too, but we will be okay."

"We could have met at my house. My parents wouldn't expect anything." Dean touched Rory's shoulder.

"Anywhere but the dark alleyway." Lane complained.

Rory sighed.

"What is the plan?" Dean asked.

"I don't know." She shrugged. "I thought you had a plan." She looked at them with shock on her face.

"I do have a plan." Lane told her. "Buuut no one wants to listen to my plan." She rolled her eyes.

"We aren't telling my mom." Rory said sternly.

"I still don't understand why you won't tell her." Lane started again. "You tell your mom everything." That was the thing that bothered Lane the most. "She would understand. She would help us."

"Ryan doesn't want her to know." Was Rory's answer.

Lane shook her head. "Ryan doesn't think there is an actual problem, but there is. This is serious. We don't know what Trevor has planned. We are going to get in big trouble."

"Whatever he puts in Ryan's locker, we will take it out. If you are too nervous, you don't have to come with us." Rory told her bluntly, causing the other two teenagers to give her a concerning look.

"I don't understand what has gotten into you. You are usually so careful. You are the level headed one of our group." Lane told her. "Besides, even if we take 'whatever' out of Ryan's locker doesn't mean Trevor won't try something else." She knew it was a never ending issue until they told someone with authority.

"We will figure that out too. We can handle it. Are you in or are you out?" Rory's tone didn't waver, and her attitude was worrying the others. They had never seen her quite like this.

Lane wasn't sure where Rory's new found attitude was coming from, but she couldn't let them do it alone. "I'm in." She said reluctantly.

"Me too." Dean would never let Rory do anything without him.

"Great. Let's figure this out, and make sure this jerk leaves my brother alone." Rory was worried, and she knew she was acting strangely, but she had to protect her brother. He was always protecting her, and this time she was going to return the favor.

* * *

"Grandma." Ruby said as they entered the Gilmore mansion and began taking off their coats. "I'm so happy to see you." She ran into Emily's arms after dropping her coat on the ground.

"Rube." Lorelai said as she picked up the coat and handed it to the maid along with hers. "Thank you." She told her politely and then focused her attention on her youngest. Ruby was always so affectionate with Emily, and vice versa. It always made Lorelai a little jealous. She shrugged it off. She appreciated the relationship her mother had with the kids. Maybe one day she and her mother would be able to figure their relationship out. There was always hope.

"Oh my sweet Ruby. I have missed you." Emily told the girl as she smothered her with kisses.

Ruby giggled. "You saw me last week, grandma."

"A week is entirely too long." Emily gave her one last hug. She looked over at Ryan.

"Hi grandma." He said with a smile.

"You are such a handsome young man." She gave him a hug. "Although," she gave him a once over. "You look tired. Have you been sleeping?"

"I'm fine." Ryan responded quickly. "Where's grandpa?" He quickly changed the subject. He wasn't in the mood to talk about how tired he looked. He had a lot of things on is mind, but that didn't matter. He would figure it all out.

"He is on a business trip." She said as she motioned for them all to head to the sitting room. "He sends his love." Emily looked at her daughter. "Lorelai."

"Hi mom." She gave her a nod as she looked around the room.

"What are you looking for?" She noticed her daughter's wondering eye.

"Waldo." Lorelai joked. "My other daughter." Lorelai said after receiving a look from her displeased mother. A look she was all too familiar with. "Where is she? She was supposed to meet us here."

"Oh she didn't tell you." She said with a smirk as if she knew she had something over her daughter.

"Tell me what?" Lorelai could already feel the tension in her neck.

Ryan gave his mom a look. He had a bad feeling about this.

"She got caught up and won't be able to join us." Emily happily told her daughter.

Lorelai shook her head as if she had misunderstood what her mother had said. "She got what?"

"She said it was important. I told her I understood." Emily acted as if it wasn't a big deal.

Lorelai couldn't believe what she was hearing.

Before Lorelai could speak, Ryan interrupted with, "If that's all it takes."

"Ryan." Lorelai shot him a warning. "Will you take Ruby to your grandfather's study?"

"Sure thing."

"I want to listen." Ruby whined as Ryan led her out of the room.

"Mom." Lorelai refocused her attention on her mother. "Did she say why?"

"No. I figured she would tell you. You claim your kids can tell you everything." Emily sniped.

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "They can." She sounded like a teenager with her response.

"Hmm." Emily cocked her head and walked to the drink cart. "Are you thirsty?"

"You are unbelievable." Lorelai couldn't believe how quickly they had gotten into a fight. "I don't want a drink. I want to know what you have to say."

"Oh no. You never want to know what I have to say." Emily poured herself a drink.

"Go ahead." Lorelai motioned. "What's on your mind?"

"You probably already know." Emily had a feeling that she didn't.

Lorelai crossed her arms. "Just in case I don't."

"I spoke to Hanlin a few days ago." Emily started.

"Headmaster Charleston." Lorelai hated when her mother called him by his first name.

"He had a few concerns about Rory."

Lorelai narrowed her eyes. She took a breath before speaking, "What kind of concerns about Rory?" She was already furious, and she had a feeling it was only going to get worse.

"Well."

"What?" Lorelai wasn't playing around.

"She has been doing better the past few weeks, but it seems that she had a rough start." Emily told her daughter. "She received a few D's which isn't a good start if she wants to get into an Ivy League School."

"Rory doesn't get D's." Lorelai didn't believe her mother.

"Hanlin wouldn't lie to me." Emily explained to her. "He only told me because he thought I could talk to her. I could figure out what was bothering her. It could be all the changes with her home life."

"Don't start." Lorelai said quickly. "Her home life is fine. Headmaster Charleston should speak to me if he has concerns about Rory. Not you. I am her mother." Lorelai said loudly.

"I know that Lorelai." Emily sighed. "I thought you already knew. That's why I didn't say anything before. Your kids tell you everything. You are the perfect mother."

"I don't have time for this." She threw her hands up in the air.

"I'm sure Rory will be fine. Maybe she could ask that Jeff kid for help. Hanlin says he is an exceptional student."

"Jess." Lorelai was fed up. "His name is Jess. You better believe that I am going to have several words with your friend Hanlin." Lorelai pointed at her mother. "I don't care if you two are friends. I don't care if you pay for her school. It does not give him the right to talk to you about my kid or even Jess for that matter." She headed towards Richard's study. "Ryan. Ruby."

"What are you doing? Where are you going?"

"We are leaving."

The kids appeared.

"We have an agreement.'

"You are right. We do. But like you so kindly pointed out, my daughter is keeping things from me. I don't know where she is. I have to find her."

"Mommy." Ruby whined. "We just got here."

"Ruby can spend the night." Emily said.

Lorelai shook her head. She was not interested in seeing her mother again for at least a week. "No. Sorry kiddo. We have to go."

"Bye sweetheart."

"I wish you and mommy wouldn't fight so much." Ruby hugged her grandmother.

"See ya." Ryan waved.

"Lorelai."

"Mom."

They grabbed their coats and headed out of the house. Lorelai stopped Ryan. "Do you know where your sister is?"

Ryan shook his head. It was the truth.

"I can't believe she did this."

"It's Rory. She probably had a good reason." Ryan knew his sister was a goody two shoes.

"There is never good reason or not talking to me." She told him. "Always remember that."

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought! More to come soon!**


	83. Lane

**I am so very sorry for the lack of updates. I haven't had a whole lot of time to write and then when I did have time, I had a little bit of writers block. I was worried about this chapter and the flow. I hope it turned out okay, and you all enjoy it. If there are still people out there reading this.**

 **Thanks to everyone who has stuck by me. I appreciate all of you. Hopefully I will get better with my updates.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2.10: Lane**

Rory, Dean, and Lane were hiding out behind a tree in front of Stars Hollow High. They had been there for a while, and Lane had mentioned several times that she didn't think Trevor and Daniel were ever going to show up. Rory continued to tell her to be quiet and wait.

Finally, Trevor and Daniel were sneaking in the side of the school. "There they are." Rory exclaimed as if she were excited it was finally happening.

"I think that is our cue to follow them." Dean told her as he pointed at the boys. "They are probably going straight to the gym locker rooms. That's what I heard them say."

"Good idea, Dean." Rory and Dean started to walk away.

"I can't." Lane paused.

Rory turned to her friend. "What?"

"I thought I could do this." She said nervously. "But I can't." She shook her head. "I think we should all go home." She knew that it was a big mistake, and if she got caught she would never be able to leave her house ever again.

Rory shook her head. "I'm not going home. We have to stop them."

"Okay." Lane said sadly. "But I have to go home." She gave Rory a soft look. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine." Rory looked at Dean. "Let's go before we lose them." It was as if she didn't even care about Lane and her feelings.

"We will let you know how it goes." Dean told Lane as he followed Rory into the school.

Lane sighed sadly. She already knew how it was going to go. Even though she was no longer participating, Lane was still nervous for her friends. This was never going to end well. She had to do something to stop it.

* * *

"How was school?" Luke asked Jess as they sat in silence eating at Weston's.

Jess sighed heavily and narrowed his eyes. "You already asked me that….Twice before." He reminded his uncle.

"I'm just really interested." Luke was trying his best to make an effort with his nephew.

"The answer isn't going to change." Jess took a bite of his chicken.

"Right." Luke smirked. "You are going to mumble fine again."

Jess sat his fork down. "Uncle Luke, what do you want from me? What is all of this about?" He was curious. He knew his uncle had to have some kind of agenda.

"I wanted us to spend some time together." Luke said honestly.

"We can do that without talking." He pointed to his food. "See. We are eating. That's the best kind of bonding."

"Jess." Luke said sternly.

"Uncle Luke. We don't have to do this." Jess just wanted to go home.

"We wouldn't have to do this if you would talk to me on a regular basis." Luke informed him. It was like pulling teeth with Jess.

"I can't believe this is coming from you." Jess pointed out. "You aren't the most talkative person on the planet. You can't expect me to be."

"I am not asking you to be the most talkative person on the planet. You don't have to talk to anyone else, but I want you to talk to me." Luke pleaded. "It is good for us to talk."

"You are getting that from Lorelai." Jess pointed out the obvious. It had to be Lorelai. Talking was pretty out of character for his uncle.

"No." Luke said quickly. "I'm not."

"Yes you are. You haven't wanted to hash out your feelings before." Jess sighed. "Just admit it."

"I'm concerned about you, Jess." Luke tried his best to find the right words. "You have become so distant lately. More than normal. If you don't talk to me, I won't be able to help you." Luke hoped to get through to his nephew.

Jess thought about it for a minute. His uncle had given him an opening to talk. He could tell his uncle how he was feeling. "Well…" Jess started.

Before he could finish his thoughts, Luke's barely used cellphone rang. "Hold that thought." Luke said as he picked up the phone. "Hey Lorelai." He said with smile causing Jess to roll his eyes. "Slow down. You are talking faster than normal. I thought Rory was supposed to meet you at your parents' house?" He looked up at Jess. "Alright. Yes. I'll talk to him. Yes. I'll check. Yes. See you at home." Luke hung up the phone and stared at his uncle. "Do you have something to tell me?" He asked.

Jess shrugged. He knew at that moment he shouldn't have lied for Rory. All the blame was somehow going to be placed on him, and it really pissed him off. "I guess our dinner is over." He smirked.

"Watch your tone." Luke warned. "Do you know where Rory is?"

"She is working on a project at Chilton." Jess told him. That was all he knew.

"I know you are lying." He said firmly. "Lorelai checked Chilton. She's not there." Luke pointed. "So you tell me where she is."

"I don't know what to tell you." Jess admitted, getting more and more upset with his uncle by the minute.

"The truth would be nice." Luke said, becoming more upset with his nephew by the minute.

"What I told you is the truth." Jess stood up. "It is all that I know. It is exactly where Rory told me she would be."

"Rory wouldn't lie."

"But I would." Jess snapped back. He was completely fed up with his uncle.

"That's not what I meant."

"It is exactly what you meant." Jess fought back. "Your precious little Rory couldn't possibly lie or do something wrong." He paused. "But of course your thug nephew is capable of any type of deceit."

"Hey that's not true."

"Yes it is. You are just like everyone else in my life." Everyone was now staring at the two of them, but Jess didn't care. Luke was the one that was a little concerned about the scene that was unfolding before him. "Just a big disappointment." Jess finally finished his sentence, sadly and angrily.

"Jess. Sit down. Let's talk about this."

Jess shook his head and threw his arms in the air. "There is nothing to talk about. Besides, you probably need to be the lap dog you have become and do whatever master Lorelai wants you to do." Jess yelled. "Don't let me stand in the way. I don't need this, and I don't need you." He stormed out of the restaurant.

"Jess. Jess. Damn it." He threw some cash onto the table. "Get back to your meals." He yelled at the crowd of customers, who were staring at him, before making his way outside. He looked for Jess but the boy had been too quick. He was nowhere to be found.

"Luke."

Luke turned around and was disappointed to see Lane and not Jess. "Not now Lane. I've got to find Jess."

"No." Lane stopped him. "You have to help me."

"Lane I can't."

"It's about Rory. I think she is about to get in big trouble."

Luke stopped walking and looked at the young girl. "Alright. I'm listening."

* * *

"Are you sure you don't know where she is?" Lorelai asked her only son as she got back in the car after searching Chilton and speaking with Luke. She glanced back at Ruby, who had fallen asleep while Lorelai was in the school.

Ryan sighed. "Mom. I already told you that I have no clue." It was the truth. He really didn't know, and he was actually relieved. There was no reason for him to be in any kind of trouble.

"She is probably with Dean." Lorelai thought out loud. "Which will be the last time she will see him for a while." Lorelai even surprised herself when she said it, but she was really mad at her daughter. She probably had never been this upset with Rory. Not only did she skip Friday night dinner, but she lied about it. Even worse she had been keeping her bad grades a secret from Lorelai. Granted Lorelai wasn't mad about the grades. She knew Rory, and she knew that she would be okay. But she was mad that Rory kept it from her, and she had to hear it from her mother of all people.

"We don't know if she is with Dean or not." Ryan finally spoke up. He could tell that his mother was pretty upset. He had never seen her this mad with Rory. With him it was a normal occurrence, but not for his sister.

"I can't believe she would skip dinner and lie about it." Lorelai was still trying to wrap her mind around it.

"Mom." Ryan gave her a look.

She quickly looked at her son, and then back at the road.

"This is Rory we are talking about." Ryan told his mom. "She's probably reading or something. Lost track of time. She's not doing anything wrong. I'm sure of it." He shrugged it off. He believed in his sister.

Lorelai shook her head. "You kids have got to stop stressing me out. I don't think I can take much more."

"Now you know how your mother felt." Ryan chuckled.

Lorelai gave him a quick death stare.

"Too soon?" Ryan scrunched his face.

"There will never be a good time to say that sentence." Lorelai gave him a quick smirk. "Ever. Ever. Again."

"Got it."

"We have to find Rory."

"You act like she has been kidnapped." Ryan noted.

"When a mother doesn't know where one of her kids is, it feels like that, okay." Lorelai's voice was quiet and shaky. She had a bad feeling about the whole situation. Mother's intuition. "Moms always think of the worse thing possible in hopes that it won't be that bad."

"Got it." Ryan smiled. "I do."

"I'm thinking about locking you all up for the rest of your life. It will make me feel better." Lorelai smiled at her son. "We can watch movies and eat all the junk food we want. Forever."

"At least you can still joke."

"Not a joke." She said quickly. "Definitely not a joke."

* * *

Inside the school, Trevor and Daniel were standing beside Ryan's locker. Rory and Dean had snuck in behind the two boys and were hiding behind a set of lockers. Rory was trying her best to be as quiet as she possibly could.

"Alright. Here we go." Trevor pulled a bag out of his pocket.

"Whoa. Wait a minute. What is that?"

"Oh come on Daniel. You know what this is." He waved the bag in front of Daniel.

Behind the other locker, Rory whispered, "What is it?"

"I think it is pot." Dean whispered.

"You know what pot looks like?"

"Shhh." Dean told her. He was positive that Trevor would hear them if they weren't quieter.

"Where did you get that?" Daniel asked.

"Doesn't matter."

"It does matter. You shouldn't have that."

"I got it from my brother." Trevor informed him. "But I won't have it for too much longer." He pointed to Ryan's locker.

Daniel shook his head. "This has gone too far."

"You sound like a little girl."

"Trevor." Daniel sighed. "This is a bad idea. It is going to backfire. Besides Ryan doesn't deserve this. He is a good guy."

"Are you hot for him?"

Daniel rolled his eyes. "You are such a dick."

"Thanks. And nothing is going to go wrong. I have it figured out. I'm going to place it in his locker and anonymously send coach a hint. Gilmore will be kicked off of the team for sure." Trevor smiled devilishly.

Trevor couldn't believe that he had let it go this far. It was his mistake.

Back behind the locker, Rory was about to explode as she listed to Trevor and Daniel. "Do you hear him? We have to say something."

"Shh. Rory. They will hear us." He warned her again.

"There we go." Trevor said as he slipped the bag in Ryan's locker.

"I was so stupid to think that you were better than this."

"Ryan is getting exactly what he deserves." Trevor clapped his hands.

"You big jerk." Rory ran towards Trevor. Dean was unable to stop her.

"Gilmore's sister." Trevor was surprised to see her. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I'm going to get that stuff out of my brother's locker, and you are going to leave him alone." Rory yelled at him.

"What are you going to do about it, princess?" Trevor smirked. "Tell on me. No one is going to believe you because the proof is in your brother's locker. It would seem that your brother may have a little bit of drug problem." He didn't seem to care that she was there. "He will be gone and things will go back to the way they were always meant to be."

"You aren't going to get away with this."

"Watch me." Trevor started to leave. Before Rory could say anything. Dean jumped out of hiding and punched him in the face.

"Dean." Rory was taken by surprise. She never thought Dean would be capable of hitting anyone.

Trevor punched him back and both boys began rolling on the ground, fighting with one another.

Daniel and Rory shared looks. They weren't sure what they were supposed to do.

"Damn. Your boyfriend should be a boxer." Daniel told Rory. It sounded stupid but it was the only thing that he could think to say.

"Dean." Rory said again.

The fighting continued.

"What is going on in here?" Mr. Medina walked into the locker room with Luke following close behind. "Break it up."

Both men pulled the teenagers apart.

Rory's eyes met Luke's. She had never seen him look at her that way. He was disappointed. She could tell. She looked away from him.

Mr. Medina focused on the boys. "Last time I checked no one was supposed to be here at this hour." He looked back and forth at all three boys.

"Sorry Principal Medina." Trevor made sure to speak first. "Daniel and I heard that Ryan Gilmore was up to no good and his sister was trying to protect him."

"You are such a liar." Rory yelled at him.

"Rory." Luke touched her shoulder and gave her a warning look.

Rory backed down.

"Don't bring me into this." Daniel told Trevor. He was finished with all the lies.

"Open his locker." Trevor pointed.

"There is no way Ryan has drugs in his locker." Luke said softly.

Mr. Medina found the master key and opened the locker door. The plastic bag was sitting on top of Ryan's spare clothes.

"What?" Luke was shocked.

"He put it in Ryan's locker." Rory informed Luke.

"It's true." Daniel looked at Trevor. He knew that their friendship was officially over. "That's Trevor's."

"It wasn't in my locker." Trevor was beginning to become nervous. This was not playing out how he had imagined. "We had nothing to do with it. Right, Daniel?" He looked at his former best friend.

"Here." Daniel handed Mr. Medina a note.

"Daniel." Trevor growled.

Mr. Medina began to read the note. "Hey Dan, don't forget tonight is the night. I've got the perfect stuff to get Gilmore kicked off the basketball team. We will place it in his locker." Mr. Medina looked at Trevor. "I believe this note has your signature on it, Mr. Rosen."

"Daniel." Trevor couldn't believe that his friend had betrayed him.

"It was all his idea." Daniel admitted. "But I am still responsible. I should have spoken up sooner." He felt bad about it.

Mr. Medina shook his head and stared at Trevor. "Drugs are unacceptable Mr. Rosen."

"I didn't take them." Trevor tried to defend himself.

"But you planted them on another student." Mr. Medina folded the note. "That kind of behavior will not be tolerated in my school." His tone was stern. He then turned towards Dean and Daniel. "Mr. Henley. Mr. Forrester. I think you are also both aware of the rules of this school."

They both nodded.

"Alright. You three come with me. We will call your parents and discuss your punishments." He informed all of them. He then turned towards Luke. "Thank you for calling me Mr. Danes."

Luke nodded. He was just thankful for Lane.

"I'm assuming you and Ms. Gilmore will take care of Rory. She is no longer part of my jurisdiction."

"We will." He looked at Rory. "Let's go."

Rory nodded. She looked at Dean and gave him a sympathetic look before following Luke out of the locker room.

As they walked out of the school, Rory finally spoke up because she felt like she needed to say something. "Thanks, Luke."

Luke surprised her by completely freezing. He turned around to face her. "Thanks, Luke? Seriously. Thanks, Luke." He exclaimed. "If it hadn't been for Lane, I never would have known where you were." His tone was firm.

"I'm sorry." Her voice shook as she said the words. "I was trying to protect my brother."

"That is not your job. It is your mom's job. It is my job. But it is not your job." He was furious with her. "That kid could have hurt you. Drugs are not something you need to mess around with. Ever." He shook his head. "You are supposed be smart, but this was not smart. I can't believe you would put yourself in such a dangerous position."

"I didn't realize that he was going to plant drugs in Ryan's locker." Rory tried to defend herself.

"It doesn't matter what you thought was going to happen. You lied to us, Rory." Luke was hurt. "Your mom is worried sick about you."

"I'm sorry." Rory had tears forming in her eyes. "I'm really, really sorry."

"I know, but you have to do better than this." Luke pulled her into his arms. The tears that escaped her eyes, made Luke sympathetic to her. "It's going to be okay." He held her and sighed. He was relieved that she was okay.

He would take her home, and then he would have to find Jess.

* * *

Lorelai paced the floor of her living room. Ryan walked into the room eating a corn dog. "Where did you get that?" She pointed.

"In the kitchen. Remember Luke lives here."

"He doesn't like corn dogs."

"No. But we do." He waved his corn dog. "I was hungry. You didn't let us eat at grandma's house." He took a bite of his corn dog.

"That woman is infuriating." She began pacing the floor.

After he finished chewing, "Mom, seriously. You are going to fall through the floor if you don't stop."

"We will get it fixed during the remodel." Lorelai told him. "I can't believe she isn't home. I can't believe Luke isn't answering my phone calls." She pointed to the phone.

"I think you just need to chill out."

Lorelai gave him a look.

"Or not."

Before Lorelai could finish her sentence, she heard the door open. "Rory." She met her daughter and her boyfriend in the foyer. "Oh my God." She looked the girl up and down before throwing her arms around her. "Thank God. You are okay. You are okay, right?" She asked Rory, but looking at Luke for the answer.

"She's alright." Luke said solemnly. "Sorry. I should have called when I found her."

Lorelai nodded, simply. "Good." She responded to him and then looked back at her daughter as she led her into the living room. "Now we can move on to other things."

Rory closed her eyes. She had been anticipating this conversation since she saw Luke walk into the school.

"Ryan." Lorelai looked at her son. "I think you should head upstairs so that we can talk to your sister."

"Actually." Luke stopped Ryan from walking upstairs. "This involves Ryan."

"What?" Ryan said shockingly. He was one hundred percent sure that he should not be in any kind of trouble.

"Ryan." Lorelai sighed. "You promised that you didn't know what your sister was up to."

"I didn't." He looked at his sister. "Tell her that I didn't."

"He didn't." Rory said quickly.

Lorelai looked at Luke for confirmation and explanation. "He didn't." Luke reassured her. "But it does involve him."

"Okay. I'm gonna need a little more information." Lorelai motioned. She was anxiously waiting for someone to tell her what was going on.

Luke looked over at Rory. She shook her head before he even asked her. She didn't want to be the one to tell her mom.

"Luke." Lorelai said worriedly.

"Trevor and Daniel tried to plant drugs in your locker. Dean overheard them talking about it, so we followed them tonight." Rory explained.

"That's insane." Ryan quickly responded with an eye roll. "Why would they do that?"

"They wanted you off of the team. You knew that." Rory tried to explain to her brother.

Lorelai was listening to the conversation, trying to wrap her mind around what Rory was saying. "Where would they even get drugs?" She asked.

"He has an older brother." Rory explained, as if all older brothers were drug suppliers.

"Of course." Lorelai mocked.

"I think Dean made all of that up." Ryan still was having a hard time coming to terms with what his sister had told him.

"He wasn't making anything up." Luke chimed in.

Ryan looked at him with disbelief. This couldn't be happening. He knew Trevor was a little off, but he never thought that he would go this far.

"He threatened you, Ryan. But you didn't want to believe it." Rory told him, also taking time to glance over at her mother. She wasn't sure where her mom's mind was or how she was feeling about what she was hearing.

"Why didn't you tell me all of this?"

"We knew that you wouldn't believe us." Rory explained to her brother.

"Why didn't you tell me? Someone should have told me that all of this was happening." Lorelai finally said. She then looked at Luke. "How did you know?"

"Lane found me soon after you called to tell me that Rory didn't show up for dinner. She explained everything to me, and I called Principal Medina." Luke explained. "We were all lucky that he answered the phone." He looked at Rory and then back at Lorelai. "By the time we got there, Dean and the Trevor kid were fighting."

Lorelai couldn't believe all of this had happened.

Luke turned to Ryan. "Principal Medina opened your locker to find the drugs Trevor had planted, but luckily David had a letter that Trevor had written about what he planned to do. I don't think you'll have to worry about him anymore."

"Daniel." Rory corrected. "Not David.

"Oh yeah." Luke shrugged it off.

Ryan was still in disbelief. "You could have gotten hurt." He half-yelled at his sister. "Seriously hurt."

"I was trying to protect you." Rory stuck with her story.

"No." Lorelai chimed in. "It is not your job to protect your brother. You should have come to me as soon as you thought something was wrong." She then turned to Ryan. "You too. You can't just shrug a threat off like everything will be okay. We are lucky that Lane had the good sense to find Luke."

"Principal Medina is going to handle the boys. I assume Daniel and Dean will probably be suspended for a few days." Luke expected. "He couldn't punish Rory because she is no longer a student there."

Lorelai nodded her head. She was furious with her daughter, for many reasons. "Ryan, why don't you go upstairs, okay?" She told him.

Ryan nodded still trying to take in everything he had learned. "Am I in trouble?" He asked.

Luke shook his head. "No."

Ryan nodded again, gave Rory a look, and walked upstairs to his room.

"Mom I am so sorry." Rory began.

Lorelai shook her head. "Do you know how worried I was when I didn't know where you were?" Lorelai asked, but Rory knew it wasn't actually a question she was supposed to answer. "To make it even better, you made me look like an idiot in front of my mother."

"That's why you are mad?" Rory suddenly changed her attitude.

"Oh no Rory. I am mad because you lied to me."

"I didn't technically lie to you." Rory said it before she even realized it.

Lorelai was shocked by Rory's new found attitude and demeanor. "You weren't where you were supposed to be." Lorelai shot back. "Jess told us you were at Chilton. Obviously you weren't. I expected you to meet us at your grandparents' house."

Rory didn't say anything. She wasn't sure what she was supposed to say.

Lorelai rocked back and forth, trying to figure out what she needed to say. There were so many things running through her mind, and she didn't know where to even begin. "You want to tell me about your grades." She crossed her arms.

Rory was surprised, but she knew exactly what her mom was referring to. "What? Who told you?"

"Not you." Lorelai snapped back.

Luke was watching the exchange. He wasn't sure when he should jump in or what he would say if he did.

"Your grandma informed me in a ha, ha, ha, I know something you don't know kind of way. It was embarrassing." Lorelai explained. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I'm doing better. I have it handled. I didn't think there was anything to tell you." Rory told her mother.

Luke still watching on, trying to figure out what he should say.

"Rory." Lorelai sighed. "You should have told me. You can tell me anything. I don't understand why you didn't tell me. Explain it to me." She wanted to understand it, mainly because her feelings were hurt.

"I just couldn't."

"That's not an answer, Rory."

"Lorelai." Luke gently touched her shoulder. He could tell that she was getting upset.

"You've been a little busy." Rory sighed and looked away from her mom.

"I am never too busy for you, Rory, and you know that." Lorelai made Rory look at her.

"I couldn't tell you –" Rory paused. "Because – " She sighed. "It is your fault."

"What?" Lorelai was taken by surprise. This conversation was heading in a different direction than Lorelai expected.

"You moved us here." Rory argued.

Lorelai couldn't believe her ears. "You love Stars Hollow."

Rory closed her eyes. She didn't get it. Rory looked at her mother. "Yes I do, but I shouldn't have been taken out of my school and put in a place like Stars Hollow High. They do not have the curriculum to compete with my private school education." Rory's voice rose.

"Rory." Lorelai shook her head. "You are brilliant. It doesn't matter where you go to school."

"I got lazy." Rory could feel tears forming in her eyes.

"You were here a year!" Lorelai exclaimed.

"It affected me." Rory raised her voice. "I'll probably never get into an Ivy League School now."

"Yes you will." Lorelai was sure of that. "You can get back on track."

"What if you decide to move us again? You didn't give us much of a notice last time."

"We aren't moving again. Stars Hollow is our home now."

"You want us to talk to you about things but you don't show us the same courtesy."

"That's not true." Lorelai said back.

"You moved us here."

"It was the best thing for our family. You've even told me that before, Rory."

"It wasn't the best thing for my education. I'm a failure." She wiped away a tear that as falling down her face.

"You are the farthest thing from a failure. You know that."

"You know." Luke intervened. "I think we all need a little time to cool off."

"You didn't consult us about him either." Rory pointed.

"Yes I did. We had several discussions about Luke." Lorelai really couldn't believe how Rory was behaving.

"You didn't talk to us about your decision not to marry him, and then just moved in here. We love him, but if you are just going to string him along then, it is probably better that you cut him loose now. Save us all the pain that's bound to come." Rory said harshly.

"Rory Gilmore." Lorelai said sharply.

"Alright." Luke knew it was enough. "Rory. That is not what is happening here. You shouldn't talk to your mother that way."

Lorelai didn't know what to say. Rory had never spoken to her like that before.

"Rory. I think it might be best if you went to your room. It's late. I think we are all pretty tired after tonight."

"You aren't my dad." Rory said hatefully, immediately regretting her words.

"I know that." Luke said quietly. "But." He started before Lorelai interrupted him.

"He might not be your dad, but he is your parent. I don't know where this newfound attitude has come from, but it needs to find its way back to wherever it belongs because I don't like it nor do I appreciate it."

Rory stood there, never feeling quite so guilty. She knew that she was wrong and wasn't sure she would be able to take it back.

"I think you should go to your room like Luke told you to do."

Rory nodded and walked to her room, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Lorelai. Are you okay?" Luke asked as he followed Lorelai to the couch.

Lorelai shook her head. "Who was that person? It wasn't my daughter."

"She's a teenager. Hell, Jess basically did the same thing earlier." Luke said sadly. "I'm not worried about what she said about me. I know that she is just lashing out."

"Are we failing our kids?' Lorelai asked as she rested her head on Luke's shoulder.

"I don't know." He sighed. "Today wasn't a good day."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "You know that is not the right answer. You were supposed to say of course not Lorelai. We are great parents."

"I think we are doing the best that we can and that's all that we can do."

"How could I be so oblivious? I should have known Rory was having a hard time at school. Her mood has been horrible. She has been killing herself over her studies."

"That's just Rory. You know that." Luke hoped to make her feel better.

"I should have known that that little prick Trevor was up to no good. Why didn't I know? What kind of mother am I?" Lorelai wiped away a tear.

"Oh Lorelai. Don't cry." Luke held her tighter. "You are an amazing mother."

"An amazing mother would be on top of these things." Lorelai sighed. "I guess I have been preoccupied."

"Are you having second thoughts about us?" Luke asked.

Lorelai shook her head. "I'm not having second thoughts about us. Rory shouldn't have said that. You don't think that I am stringing you along, do you?"

"Of course not. Lorelai I want to be your husband one day, but I'm also happy with the way things are. I promise."

Lorelai reached for his hand. "I can't believe Rory."

"I think you both need some time to cool off."

"Yeah. A lot of time." She looked around. "Where is Jess? I'd like to find out if he knew about all of this."

"Well he threw a similar fit as Rory, and ran off earlier." Luke informed her. "I went after him, but Lane stopped me. I was hoping he would be home by now."

"We will find him."

"Yeah." Luke squeezed her hand. "I have no idea where he could be."

* * *

Jess impatiently stood outside of a big stone house. The door finally opened.

"Jess." Paris was surprised to see him. "What are you doing here?"

"Hey. I uh didn't know where else to go. Can I come in?"

"Sure." Paris stepped aside and let Jess walk into the house and then followed him inside.

* * *

 **I changed the Lorelai/Rory scene many times, but ultimately felt like this was the way that it should go. Let me know what you all thought. I promise to update soon!**


	84. Timeout

**I feel like I always start these A/N's with I'm sorry it has taken me so long to get this chapter up. But I always am sorry when it takes me forever to get you guys a chapter posted. I have split this chapter into two parts so that I could go ahead and get something posted. I hope you all enjoy!**

 **Thanks for sticking with me through my absence!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2.11: Timeout**

The next morning Luke woke up to see Lorelai walking back into the bedroom. She was fully dressed and ready to start the day. He glanced over at the clock to see it was only seven in the morning. Lorelai never woke up that early on a Saturday, but it made sense today. Neither one of them had gotten much sleep. Both were preoccupied with the events of the night before.

Luke didn't think he had even got into bed until close to two that morning. Lorelai finally convinced him not to drive to Paris' house to bring Jess home. She knew that he wanted to, but she also knew that it wouldn't do any good. Jess needed a night away, and Luke needed time to calm down. They had both been thankful for Paris' phone call at almost midnight after Jess had been MIA. Luke was about to call the police.

Lorelai knew Paris, and she knew that it had probably taken a lot for her to call them and let them now that Jess was okay.

"What are you doing up so early?" Luke finally asked her as she made her way to the closet to get a pair of shoes.

"Like either one of us slept."

"You are in your work clothes." He noticed as he sat up in the bed. "It's Saturday. You don't have to work this Saturday."

"I decided to go in for a few hours." She sat on the bed to put her shoes on.

"Why?" Luke wondered. "Don't you need to talk to Rory." They hadn't left things on a good note, and he figured they needed to hash it all out.

"Rory said everything she needed to say last night." Lorelai said with a sigh.

"Lorelai." Luke moved closer to her.

"Luke." Lorelai said in a somber tone. "I can't talk to Rory right now. I'm still upset with her. I need some time to calm down and cool off." She informed him. "I need time to think about everything I learned last night."

"Lorelai." Luke said again. "If you don't talk to her, she is going to sit in her room all day, feeling guilty. You know Rory."

"That's exactly what she needs." Lorelai stood up. "We both need a time out." She thought it would be good for Rory to think about what had happened and what could have happened had Luke not saved the day.

Luke sighed. He could tell by the look in her eyes that she was not going to change her mind. "What do you want me to do with her today?"

"You don't have to do anything with her. Like you said, she will stay in her room all day." Lorelai rambled through her jewelry box. "Besides shouldn't you be at work?" She pointed to the clock.

"I'm taking the day off. I need to deal with Jess." Luke told her.

"So the diner is going to be closed all day. Stars Hollow won't know what to do without you."

He shook his head. "Caesar has it under control. I think it is time that my nephew and I had a long chat about his behavior." He sighed. "I still think I should have gone to Paris' house and picked him up. He shouldn't be rewarded for bad behavior."

"I doubt very seriously that being with Paris Gellar was a reward. Trust me on that." She moved closer to him. "At least you knew where he was."

"Yeah no thanks to him. He can't just run away every time something doesn't go his way."

"Maybe the two of you need a time out too."

"That's not how I work." Luke grumbled. "There are going to be some serious consequences for his actions." He raised his voice slightly, immediately regretting his tone. "Sorry." He told her.

Lorelai reached for his hand. "I'm not saying that there shouldn't be consequences, but maybe you should hear him out before you start the third degree." She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "I mean I don't know if you should really take my advice at this point. I'm not doing so well in the parenting department either. My son was being threatened and didn't tell me. And my seemingly perfect daughter decided to take things into her own hands." She gave his hand a squeeze. "We will figure it out. Together." She reminded him. "If you need me to stick around and help you talk to Jess, I will. But I'm not talking to my daughter right now."

"No." Luke shook his head. "I think this might be one conversation I need to have all on my own."

She nodded. She happened to agree with him. "Call me if you need me."

"You too." He told her as he gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Ooh morning breath." She joked with him.

He playfully gave her another kiss before she walked out of the room.

Before she walked downstairs, Lorelai noticed the door to the boys' room was cracked and the light was on. She gently tapped on the door before entering. She heard Ryan say come in. She expected to find him getting ready to go play basketball. It had become his Saturday routine. However, he was sitting in his bed resting against the headboard, reading a book. "Hey." She said as she walked further into the room.

He didn't respond but nodded in her direction, continuing to focus on whatever book he was reading.

"What are you doing?"

"Reading." He said simply.

"Oh right. I was confused. I thought you were making a sandwich." She joked.

He gave her a glance but nothing more. Learning what Trevor had planned for him had really affected him. He wasn't in the mood for any of his mom's jokes.

"Are you going to practice basketball today?" She asked.

He shook his head.

"Taking a break?" She prodded for more.

He finally looked up at her, taking his attention off of his book. "A permanent break."

"What?" She was confused by his statement. "You aren't quitting."

He nodded. "Yes I am."

She shook her head and joined him on the bed. "Scoot."

Ryan rolled his eyes but moved over so she had room on the bed. "Gilmore's aren't quitters." She told him as she patted him on the leg.

Ryan furrowed his brow. "Yes we are."

"No we aren't." She argued. "We don't quit."

"Yes we do." He held his ground. "Remember that time you wanted to start walking every day."

"Maybe." She mumbled.

"Well then you will remember that we only did it one time, and I'm not even sure that counts. We didn't even make it one block."

"Ruby got tired." Lorelai defended.

"I don't think it was Ruby who got tired." Ryan told her.

Lorelai gave him a look and sighed. "That doesn't count as quitting."

"How do you figure?"

"Because walking around the neighborhood was not our thing." Lorelai smiled at him. "But you my friend have found your thing. I would hate for you to give it up because of some stupid, jealous bully." She hoped to help him.

"I'm not that good." He responded.

"Gilmore's aren't big on self-deprecation either." She reminded him. "We are pretty proud of ourselves. It's in the DNA."

"Mom." He muttered.

"I don't know much about basketball or any sport for that matter, but people who do know a lot about it have told me how talented you are. And it would be a shame if you wasted that talent."

"So you aren't going to let me quit?" Ryan figured.

Lorelai took a minute before answering his question. "I'm going to let you make that decision, but I want you to think long and hard about it before you do. I don't want you to look back one day and wish you had done things differently." She ruffled his hair. "I don't think you will have to worry about that Trevor kid anymore. I'm pretty sure he put the nail in his coffin last night."

Ryan sighed. "I had no idea what he was capable of."

"Yeah. Me either." She kissed his forehead. "I've got to get to work, but try not to sit in your room all day and think about that kid. He isn't worth our time."

"It's Saturday." He reminded her. "You don't usually work on Saturdays unless you have a wedding."

"There are some things I need to get done. Saturday is as good a day as any." Lorelai told him.

"Right." Ryan wasn't buying it. "You are trying to avoid Rory."

"I am not doing any such thing."

Ryan smiled. "Yes you are. I know your game." He pointed at her.

"I know yours too." She pointed back. "Basketball."

Ryan shook his head.

"Call me if you need me."

"Sure." Ryan said as he looked back at his book. Once his mom was gone, he looked down at his basketball. He really did love the game, but he hadn't signed up for all the competiveness and backstabbing. He wasn't sure it was worth it to him.

* * *

Downstairs, Ruby was sitting on the couch, fully dressed, waiting on her mom. "Hey kiddo. What are you doing up so early?" Lorelai said as she stepped off of the stairs.

"Waiting on you." She hopped up. "Let's go." She grabbed her mom's hand.

"Wait." Lorelai stopped her. "Where are we going in such a hurry?"

"Babette's." Ruby said as if Lorelai was already supposed to know that. "She said I could play with her today." She said happily.

"Babette?" Lorelai raised an eyebrow. "You do realize Babette is a little bit older than you."

"She's 29." Ruby said with a smile, causing Lorelai to laugh. "She's better than the little kids in my class." She explained.

Lorelai chuckled. "I thought you liked the kids in your class."

"I do." Ruby sighed dramatically, frustrated that she was having to explain this to her mommy. "But I like Babette and Morey better."

"Do they actually play with you?" Lorelai asked.

"Oh yes. It's the most fun." Ruby gleamed.

"Did I know you were spending the day with Babette?"

Ruby nodded.

"Okay. Can I get some coffee first?" Lorelai asked her little girl.

Ruby huffed. "I guess."

Lorelai heard Rory moving around in her room. She wasn't ready to talk to her other daughter. She looked at Ruby. "You know what, I will get some at the Inn." Lorelai said as she grabbed her things and Ruby and headed out the door.

"Sugah." Babette was outside waiting on them.

"Babette." Ruby ran into her arms.

"Babette, are you sure you want to keep her? You don't have too. She can go to the Inn with me." Lorelai told the woman.

Babette shook her head quickly. "I asked Ruby if she wanted to spend the day with us. We just love this little girl so much."

"She loves you too." Lorelai smiled at her little girl. "I think Luke is going to be home today if you decide you want to go home." She told Ruby. "Or you want her to go home." She told Babette.

"I won't." Ruby said simply.

"Me either." Babette responded.

"Bye mommy. I love you." Ruby gave her a hug and Lorelai kissed her forehead.

"Be good." Lorelai said as Ruby ran into Babette's house and was greeted by Morey. "Thanks for keeping her company, Babette." Lorelai loved that the neighborhood loved her kids so much.

"Oh she is never any trouble. Such a little doll." Babette exclaimed. "Oh and Lorelai I heard about what happened last night."

"What are you talking about, Babette?" Lorelai asked. What could she possibly know.

"East side Tilly told us about that Trevor kid and what he tried to do to your poor Ryan. She also told us that Rory and Dean were involved and there was a fight. I'm glad everyone is okay." Babette said quickly. "Trevor was expelled. At least Ryan won't have to worry about that scum bag again."

"He was expelled?" Lorelai wanted to make sure that she heard her right.

"Oh yeah. Right on the spot. Principal Medina is nice on the eyes, but he sure knows how to crack the whip." Babette went on.

Lorelai stopped listening. She was relieved that Trevor had been expelled. She hoped they never had to see that little jerk ever again.

* * *

"Hey." Paris said as she sat on the couch next to Jess. "How did you sleep?"

"This couch is pretty great."

"Nanny made breakfast." She informed him.

"Cool."

"I called your uncle last night." She hadn't wanted to tell Jess what she did, but she knew that she had to. She waited for his response, knowing it wouldn't be good.

"What?" Jess sat up and shook his head. "Why would you do something like that?"

"Because he would have been worried about you." She explained.

"That was the point." He raised his voice. "I wanted him to worry. I wanted him to realize what jerk he was."

"At least you have someone to worry about you." Paris gave him a look. "I know it doesn't seem good right now, but they do care about you."

"How do you know that?" Jess furrowed his brow.

"Because I know Lorelai." Paris said it plainly. "All of us are jealous of Ryan and Rory because their mom is so cool and fun. And above all else she loves them. I'm sure if she loves your uncle that she loves you too. She cares about everyone. I remember being so disappointed that they were moving. Not just because Rory was my biggest competition and motivation but because it was like I was losing a mother. Lorelai has always been there for me. If you let her, I'm sure you will see that she cares about you too."

"No." He shook his head. "No one cares about me."

Paris was now the one shaking her head. "That's not true."

Jess sighed. "I'm going to be in so much trouble."

"That's how you know they care about you. If they didn't care you wouldn't be in any trouble. Trust me." Paris stood up. "Come on. Let's go get some breakfast."

"I'm mad at you."

"You'll get over it." She said simply. "That I am sure of."

Jess smiled. Paris was a good friend to have in his corner. He would have some breakfast and then face the music with his uncle. Maybe.

* * *

Luke walked downstairs. He was beginning to become antsy. Jess still hadn't come home. He wanted to drive to Paris' house and drag him home. But Lorelai was right. Doing that wasn't going to help the situation. It would probably only make it worse. Something was going on with Jess, and Luke needed to stay calm if he was ever going to get to the bottom of it.

The house was rather quiet for a Saturday. Ryan and Rory were both in their rooms. Ryan was reading. Luke wasn't sure what Rory was doing. She hadn't made a sound all morning. He stopped outside of her room. He thought about what she had said about him the night before. It was a hard position to be in. She was right. He wasn't her father, but he really cared about her, more than she could ever truly understand. More than he really understood. He just loved all three of Lorelai's kids like they were his own. And the situation might be easier if they were married, but they didn't have to be married to be a family. He wished all the kids could understand that. They were a family.

After all those thoughts went through his head, he finally tapped on her door. He needed to check on her.

"Come in." He heard her say.

He slowly opened the door to see Rory sitting at her desk. She had turned towards the door. He could tell that she hadn't slept much. "Hey." He said nervously. "Are you hungry?" He hadn't really thought of what he was going to say when he walked into the room.

She shook her head. "I had a poptart earlier."

"Oh. You know you should probably eat something other than a poptart."

She nodded her head.

"There aren't many, if any, nutrients in poptarts."

She nodded again.

"Oatmeal. Oatmeal is really good for you."

She continued to nod.

"Eggs. I could make you some eggs." Luke continued to ramble. "Toast. Grits. Omelet. Omelets are good. I'll even put extra cheese in there for you."

"I'm fine." She told him. Rory could tell that he was nervous. "I don't need anything else to eat. The poptart was good."

Luke nodded. "Right. I um…I actually didn't come in here to see if you were hungry."

"Oh." She figured as much. "That's kind of what I thought."

"I wanted to check on you. Make sure that you are okay."

"I'm okay." She said softly. She felt bad about what she had said to him the night before.

Luke said on the edge of her bed. It was clear that he wasn't leaving until they had a conversation.

Rory didn't even know where to start. She had immediately regretted saying what she said to him and to her mom. They didn't deserve it. She was just disappointed in herself. "I'm sorry." She said softly.

Luke looked up at her. He didn't know exactly what to say.

"Really sorry." She said again before he could speak. He had been more a dad to her than Christopher had ever been, and she knew they were all very lucky to have Luke in their life. "I didn't mean it."

"I know." Luke assured her. "You were just mad."

"I think I was actually feeling guilty." She clarified. "I knew what I did was wrong, but I did it anyways. That's not me. I'm not like that. I don't do things that I'm not supposed to do."

"You are a teenager." Luke said simply as if he had solved all of her problems.

Rory gave him an innocent look. "I'm supposed to be a good teenager."

"You are a good teenager." Luke corrected her. "You are probably the best teenager ever created."

Rory shook her head.

"But you are a teenager, and it is in your DNA to make mistakes."

Rory had tears in her eyes.

"Even the very best teenagers make mistakes. Hell. Even the very best adults make mistakes." Luke gave her a slight smile.

Rory wiped away one of her falling tears.

"I'm not going anywhere." Luke told her. "You are stuck with me, kid."

Rory bit her bottom lip, still feeling bad about everything that had transpired the night before. "Good. You are going to make a really good dad one day."

"I already am a dad." Luke corrected her. "I promise to be here for you no matter what. Please remember that you can come to me with anything that you need. No questions asked. I've got your back."

Rory nodded. She could tell by the look in his eyes that he was telling the truth. Besides she knew that Luke was not a liar. He was a good man. "I'm really, really sorry." She started to cry.

Luke held her in his arms. "It's alright. We are going to get through it."

"But mom is mad at me." Rory cried.

"She's not mad at you."

"Yes. She is." Rory told him. She knew that her mom was mad at her, and she had every reason to be mad at her. Rory knew that she had screwed up. "She went to work. Today is not her day to work."

"She needed sometime." Luke continued to hug Rory. "Sometimes parents need to cool off."

"I shouldn't have disappointed her."

"You didn't disappoint her. You scared her. That's completely different." Luke looked at her. "You can't scare us like that again."

Rory nodded. "I know." She looked at him.

"We love you." Luke said. He had never told her that before.

Rory smiled through her tears and gave him another hug. "I love you too."

Luke smiled. He could feel a tear forming in his eye now too.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought! More to come soon! I promise!**


	85. Conversations

**Thank you all so much for the support! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

 **A Place to Call Home **

**Chapter 2.12: Conversations**

 _A fifteen-year-old Lorelai sat in front of her angry mother. "I can't believe you would do this, Lorelai." Emily pointed her finger._

 _Lorelai grimaced. Maybe she had taken things too far this time._

" _You just wait until your father gets home. He is going to be so disappointed in you."_

" _That's nothing new." Lorelai mumble._

" _Excuse me." Emily stopped her pacing. "What did you say?"_

 _Lorelai shrugged. "Oh nothing."_

" _Lorelai. I don't know what we are going to do with you. Really. We have given you everything you could ever ask for."_

 _Lorelai sighed. They had given her everything but what she really wanted…Their attention. Their love._

" _You go to your room and plan to spend the remainder of the night and the weekend there." Emily continued to point at her._

" _But I have plans this weekend." Lorelai complained._

" _Not anymore you don't. One day, Lorelai, you are going to learn how to behave. Even if I have to lock you in your room for months to get you to understand."_

 _Lorelai rolled her eyes._

" _Lorelai. Go." Emily pointed upstairs._

 _Lorelai rolled her eyes again and followed her mom's pointed finger upstairs. They never talked about what Lorelai had done at school or why she had done what she had done. They never did. Emily and Richard yelled and punished without ever communicating with her._

Lorelai had always promised herself that she wouldn't be that kind of parent. She knew her kids deserved better than how she had been treated. Now she sat behind the desk at the Inn. It was a rather quiet day. Soon they would be much busier due to the spring and summer crowd. But this particular Saturday was not a busy one. Lorelai was lost in her thoughts, mainly of Rory. What was she going to do with her daughter? Where had she gone wrong? Rory could trust her. Lorelai had always made that clear.

"What are you doing here?" Mia asked as she walked up to the desk.

"Oh." Lorelai shook herself out of her thoughts. "What are you doing here?" She countered.

"I asked you first." Mia said knowingly.

Lorelai sighed. "I'm working. I thought we would be much busier today." She lied slightly.

"Really?" Mia wasn't buying it.

"Yes." Lorelai kept it up. "That's probably why you are here too, right."

Mia shook her head. "I'm here because Ashley, the employee who you scheduled to work today, said you sent her home." She gave Lorelai a look.

"I thought she'd like a Saturday off. It's a beautiful day. Almost spring."

Mia gave her another look and crossed her arms. "Ashley is only scheduled to work on the weekends."

"I know."

"So." Mia paused. "You want to tell me what is going on?"

"I'm surprised you don't already know." Lorelai told her. "I thought once Babette knew the whole town would know."

"I haven't had my morning Babette gossip scoop yet." Mia joked. "Why don't you tell me? It will probably be more accurate that way."

Lorelai shook her head. "I don't know if that's true considering I had no idea what was going on in the lives of my children."

Mia furrowed her brow. "What happened?" She asked again.

Lorelai sighed heavily.

"Here." Mia grabbed her arm and led her to the couch. "We aren't busy. So sit. Talk to me."

Lorelai did as Mia had instructed. She began explaining everything that she had discovered the night before.

"Wow. That is a lot." Mia responded.

Lorelai nodded. "I know. I feel like I have failed my kids."

"Lorelai you could never fail those kids. I've told you that before, and I'm not going to tell you that again. You know that you are a wonderful mother."

"Would a wonderful mother let her kid get threatened?"

"It happens. You may be as close to superwoman as they get, but you can't do everything. No matter how hard you try."

Lorelai sighed. She knew Mia was right. "I don't know what I am going to do. I couldn't even talk to Rory today."

"You know that Rory didn't mean what she said."

"But she is right. Maybe I have been distracted."

"Lorelai." Mia took her hand. "Rory was mad. She was being defensive. She knows that you would move heaven and earth for her. Trust me."

"I have never seen her like that before. It reminded me a lot of myself."

"Our kids have a way of doing that sometimes."

"I should probably go home and talk to my daughter." Lorelai didn't want her sitting and worrying about everything that had happened. They really need to talk about it all.

Mia nodded. "I think that is a good idea."

"Oh but wait. Ashley isn't here."

"She is on her way back."

Lorelai smiled. "You knew didn't you?"

Mia nodded and smiled. "Babette may have called me this morning."

"I figured."

"Go home. Talk to your Rory. I think you will feel better."

"I think you're right." Lorelai smiled. "Thanks, Mia."

* * *

Ryan tapped on his sister's bedroom door.

"Come in." Rory said.

Ryan walked into her room. "Hey."

"Hi." She said almost guiltily.

"What are you doing?" He sat on the edge of her bed.

"Homework." She pointed.

Ryan nodded. "So."

"So." Rory knew what he wanted to talk about, but she wasn't sure that she wanted to talk about it. "I'm sorry." She said. "Really, really sorry."

"I'm not mad, Rory." Ryan informed her. "I wish you would have told me. I should have been there with you."

"You didn't think they were going to do anything."

"I was wrong." Ryan knew. "But we should have gone to mom or Luke or even my coach."

Rory nodded. She knew that he was right. "She's really mad at me."

Ryan shook his head. "Mom will be okay. She won't be mad for long."

"How do you know that?" Rory asked.

"Because I have been in your shoes. You scared her."

Rory nodded. "I know."

"She isn't used to you making mistakes. That's usually on me." Ryan smiled.

"So you really aren't mad at me?" She asked innocently.

Ryan shook his head. "No way. I'm just glad that you are okay." He gave her a hug. "Please let me be the one that gets in trouble. It works much better that way." He laughed.

"I agree. You are much better at it than me." Rory smiled.

"Hey Ryan." They heard Luke yell.

"I better go check that out." Ryan walked out of her room. "Luke."

"In here." Luke called from the living room.

Ryan walked through the foyer and began to frown when he saw Daniel standing in the living room with Luke. "Nope." Ryan said simply. "I have nothing to say to you."

"Ryan." Luke gave him a look. "You two should talk."

Ryan shook his head. "Not going to happen." He walked to the stairs.

"Ryan Gilmore." Luke said sternly. "Give him a chance to explain." He said calmly as he grabbed his keys off of the table. "I'll be back later."

Ryan gave him and a look as he walked out of the house.

"Please, Ryan. Hear me out."

Ryan shook his head again. "I thought we were friends."

"We are."

"Hell no." Ryan told him. "We aren't friends. Friends don't do what you did."

"I know." Daniel really did feel bad about what happened. "I got suspended."

"Good."

"And detention."

"Good."

"And my parents are still deciding my punishment."

"Good."

Daniel sighed. "I shouldn't have listened to Trevor. He is a jerk."

"You just now figured that out." Ryan said grumpily.

"I'm sorry, Ryan. Really. You have to believe me."

Ryan didn't say anything.

"I screwed up, but I hope that you can forgive me." Daniel said sincerely. "I wish I would have said something sooner. It was so stupid of me."

"Yeah."

Daniel sighed. He didn't know what else to say. It didn't seem like it was going anywhere. "I guess I'll go." Daniel turned around to leave.

Ryan thought for a moment. "What happened to Trevor?"

"He was expelled." Daniel turned back around.

"Seriously." Ryan was surprised.

Daniel nodded. "Yeah. Principal Medina was pretty pissed. Dean and I were lucky he didn't expel us."

"Yeah."

"We've got detention for two weeks." Daniel informed him. "And I can't play in the next three basketball games."

Ryan nodded. That seemed fair to him. "Okay."

"Ryan. I'm really, really sorry."

"You said that already."

"Because I am." Daniel hoped that Ryan believed him.

"I guess the team will be without a lot of players."

"You aren't quitting, are you?" Daniel asked, he could tell by the look on Ryan's face that he was considering.

"It shouldn't be that big of a deal." Ryan began to explain. "I started playing because I needed something to do not because I was concerned with being the best. I can't deal with that."

"At least Trevor will be gone."

Ryan shrugged. "There will be someone else that will be a jerk. That's just how it works."

"If you quit that means Trevor got exactly what he wanted." Daniel told him. "He hated you because you are so talented. You are going to let him win."

Ryan didn't say anything.

"Hell. If you don't want to be on the team with me, I will quit. Because the team needs you." Daniel told him. He looked at his watch. "I should probably go. My parents are keeping me on a short leash. I told them I wouldn't be gone long." Daniel turned to leave.

"Maybe we can shoot some hoops once you get back to school and on the team." Ryan told him. He realized the best thing he could do was forgive Daniel. He had to learn to let things go.

Daniel smiled. "That sounds like a good idea." Maybe they were on the way to being friends again.

* * *

Before Lorelai could go home, there was one place she needed to go.

She found herself standing in front of Kim's Antiques. She had changed her mind about what she was going to say and do at least seven times.

"Lorelai." Lane walked outside. She had been nervous when she saw Lorelai standing outside. She was afraid that her mama was going to find out about what she had almost done. She knew that her mama would forbid her from seeing Rory and the rest of the Gilmores if she knew what had happened and her involvement. "What are you doing here?"

Lorelai took a breath. "When I headed this way, I was hoping to speak with your mom."

"Oh." Lane's heart sank.

"But lucky for you, I changed my mind." Lorelai pointed at Lane. "But don't make me regret going against the mom code. I'm sure it is going to be bad karma for me."

Lane sighed a huge sigh of relief. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet." Lorelai informed her as she pointed to the bench for them to sit down. "I only changed my mind because in the end you did the right thing by finding Luke."

Lane nodded.

"But you did all the wrong things beforehand." Lorelai scolded.

"I know."

"Why didn't you tell someone what was going on?" She asked.

Lane winced. "I…I…I don't know. Rory thought we should handle it."

"Rory thought wrong."

"But Rory is always so smart."

"Well even the best of us make mistakes." Lorelai smiled. "I've been known to almost make a mistake a time or two."

Lane smiled at her.

"But in all seriousness –" Lorelai began. "Next time you better come to me if my kids are doing something stupid."

"Doesn't that go against the friend code." Lane asked playfully.

"Oh no. There is no such thing when danger or stupidity is involved. I promise." Lorelai smiled. "I know I should tell your mom about what happened. I know if she finds out that I didn't tell her she is going to have my head." She sighed.

"Then why aren't you going to tell her?"

Lorelai tapped Lane's leg. "Because, my sweet, beautiful, Lane, I love you, and I like having you around. And most of the time you are a really good influence on my kids. You are probably the best friend that Rory has ever had. And I don't want her to lose that because of one mistake. I know your mom wouldn't let you come over to our house or be around us if she knew what kind of trouble you could have gotten into." She explained. "So, I'm not going to tell her, but I'm going to be watching you. And you are going to promise me that it won't happen again."

Lane nodded sincerely. "I promise."

"Good." Lorelai gave the young girl a hug. "However, you will probably be spending a little less time at my house for the next few weeks."

"Got it."

"Don't ever be afraid to come to me or to Luke. We are always here for you." Lorelai squeezed Lane's hand. "Don't make me regret not telling your mom."

"I won't." Lane never wanted to see Lorelai disappointed in her again. "Thank you, Lorelai."

* * *

Jess sat on the bridge flicking rocks into the water. After he left Paris' house, he couldn't bring himself to go home. At the time he hadn't been ready to talk to his uncle. The only place he could think to go was the bridge. He felt like the bridge was his place. He didn't know why, but for some reason it made him feel safe.

Jess didn't have to turn around to know who was standing behind him. He took a breath, bracing himself for the lecture.

"Mind if I sit?" Luke asked.

"Sure." Jess mumbled.

"Your friend Parker called."

"Paris." He corrected. "I know."

"She called again today." Luke figured he didn't know that.

Jess looked at his uncle for the first time.

"She said you left her house a few hours ago."

Jess nodded. There was no point in lying to him.

"I was really worried when you didn't come home last night." Luke started. "I was relieved when your friend called. I thought about driving to her house to get you several times. Even got in the car and cranked it up once." Luke touched Jess' shoulder. "But I decided not to. I figured that if you didn't come home, you must have felt like you needed a break. You had to have a reason for staying away."

Jess didn't say anything.

"Which means that you have got to tell me what is going on with you."

"Nothing."

"That answer is crap and you know it."

Jess sighed.

"We are not leaving this bridge until you tell me what is going on with you. Because if I don't know what I am doing wrong, I can't fix it." Luke told his nephew. He really hoped that Jess was listening.

Jess didn't respond. Luke took a minute to gather his thoughts. It was obvious this wasn't going to be easy, but nothing with Jess was ever that easy. Jess was stubborn just like Luke and his grandfather. "Alright. Well if you aren't going to talk to me then I'm going to take this time to tell you a story."

"You are horrible at stories." Jess informed him with a frown.

"Okay. Do you want to talk first?"

Jess looked away from his uncle.

"That's what I thought." Luke threw a rock in the water. "You get to listen to my story. When you first came to live with me, I wasn't sure that is was going to work."

Jess made a face.

"I was really good at being a bachelor. Honestly, I liked my life that way. It was a whole lot easier."

Jess gave his uncle a look, unsure of what he was getting at. "Thanks."

"Let me finish." Luke now gave him a look. "Life might have been easier then, but Jess, you filled a hole in my life that I didn't know needed to be filled. I know it hasn't always been easy for us, and it took us both time to get used to each other. But I think we both adjusted pretty well." Luke really hoped Jess was listening. "I couldn't imagine life without you." He told him sincerely. He really meant it.

Jess thought for a moment. His uncle was giving him an opening. He should take it. "But you have new family now." Jess finally told him. The words felt like a weight being lifted off of his shoulders.

"What?" Luke gave him a confused look.

"Lorelai and her kids." Jess gave him a pointed look. "I know how it works. You have them. You don't need me anymore."

Luke shook his head. "Jess that's crazy. That is not how it works." He pointed at Jess. "You and me. We are family for life."

"It is how it worked with Liz." Jess told him solemnly.

Luke's heart sank. He knew Jess' childhood had not been a good one, but he still hated to think about it. Jess rarely talked about it, but when he did, it was never good.

"There was always someone else in her life who was more important than me." Jess frowned. "I used to count the number of guys she would bring in and out of my life, but eventually I lost count. I remember on my eighth birthday she promised to take me to the zoo. We had this whole day planned." Jess remembered.

Luke already knew it wasn't going to be good.

"When I woke up, she was gone with whatever his name was at the time." Jess sighed. "The note she left said she would be right back." He shook his head. "She didn't come back for three days. She was so high when she finally got back, she had forgotten that it was even my birthday." He threw a rock into the water.

"Oh Jess." Luke felt horrible about it. He wanted to choke his sister.

"It was the worst birthday." Jess remembered.

"I should have been there for you. I'm sorry that I failed you."

"You didn't know." Jess reassured him. "When you called that day I told you she – "

"Was getting your birthday cake." Luke finished Jess' sentence. "I should have known. I know Liz. I should have realized what she was doing."

"It's okay."

Luke shook his head. "It's not okay. I can't make up for your childhood, but I can promise you a better future." Luke touched Jess' shoulder. "Lorelai and her kids may be a part of our lives now, but that does not mean that I care about them more than you. Me and you, kid. We are in this together."

Jess didn't know what to say.

"Is that what has been bothering you lately?" Luke finally connected all the dots.

Jess nodded. "You didn't even ask me if I wanted to move in with them."

Luke looked down. "We talked about it." He remembered.

"But not really." Jess also remembered. "It wasn't like I was given the option to say no."

"Do you want to move back to the diner? We can. Lorelai will understand."

"I don't want to move back. I like it at her house."

"Okay." Luke was lost.

"I like Lorelai, and Ryan is my best friend. I felt like I was being replaced."

"Never going to happen." Luke reassured him. "I promise. I'm sorry if I did anything to make you feel that way. I will work on it."

"Okay." Jess felt good about that.

"I'm sorry about your mom."

"She hasn't called in so long, I think she may have forgotten about me."

"Jess."

"It isn't even like I want to hear from her or could even begin to know what we would talk about it. But she should at least call. She's my mom."

"I know." Luke knew he needed to do something about that. He should have done something about it sooner.

Both of them sat for a moment. To Luke's surprise, Jess was the first one to speak. "I'm sorry too." Jess looked at his uncle. "I should have come home last night. I was mad at you. I wanted to worry you."

"Well congratulations. You accomplished that." Luke informed it. It was true. He had been so worried about Jess. "Thankfully your friend called to let us know where you were."

"I thought you blamed me for Rory." Jess told him. "It really made me mad. I didn't know where she was or what she was up to. It's Rory. It couldn't have been that bad."

"Well.' Luke sighed. "It wasn't good."

"Seriously? Rory?"

"Yep. I'll tell you about it later." Luke didn't want to talk about it again. He sat for a moment. "We both need to do better."

Jess nodded.

"If you have a problem, you need to come to me about it."

Jess nodded.

"I don't want to deal with moody Jess."

"I thought you liked moody Jess." Jess joked.

Luke raised an eyebrow.

"I'll do better. I promise."

"Good." Luke gave his nephew a smile. "I think that the two of us should spend some time together each week."

"Like a weekly dinner?"

"It doesn't have to be dinner."

"Oh." Jess thought about it. "I guess you want to do it on Friday nights when the gang is at that mansion."

"No. We can do it any day except Friday."

Jess smiled. His uncle really was making an effort. Jess realized he should have talked to him sooner. "Okay."

"Good." Luke tapped Jess' shoulder. "We should probably get home."

"Yeah." Jess knew he was in trouble. Luke couldn't let him get away with staying out all night long.

"I've been thinking that I am going to let this slide under the rug." Luke gave Jess a surprised look. "But Jess you better not let it happen again. I won't be lenient next time. I can promise you that."

"I know."

"Alright. Let's get out of here." Luke was glad that he listened to Lorelai. The conversation had gone so much better than he thought it was going to go.

* * *

Lorelai walked into her house. She took a minute before making her way to Rory's bedroom door. She hesitated before she tapped lightly on the door.

"Come in." She heard Rory say on the other side of the door.

Lorelai gently pushed the door opened. Rory was sitting on her bed studying. She looked up at Lorelai with guilt and nervousness in her eyes. "Hi." Lorelai said softly

"Hi." Rory said in a matching tone.

Lorelai walked closer to the bed. "May I sit?"

Rory nodded and Lorelai sat on the end of the bed. "So." Lorelai wasn't sure where to start.

"Mom I am so sorry for what I did and how I talked to you last night. I don't know what took over me. It was so stupid. I am so stupid." Rory rattled off.

"You are not stupid." Lorelai said quickly. "You made some mistakes, but you are not stupid." She never wanted Rory to feel that way.

"But I should have known better."

"Yes. That's true, but that doesn't mean that you are stupid. You, my darling, could never be stupid." Lorelai told her daughter.

They both sat quietly for a moment. Rory knew her mom was trying to think of what she wanted to say. It would be better for her to listen.

"When I was your age –" Lorelai chuckled. "I realized that all good conversations begin this way."

Rory let out a small smile.

"I sound so old, but it is all I've been thinking about today."

"When you were my age?" Rory asked. Surprised that of all the things her mom could think of, she was thinking of when she was a teenager.

Lorelai nodded. "Yes. I did everything in my power to keep things from my parents. I lied to them. I snuck out more than I was at home." She told her. "They didn't trust me. I didn't trust them. It was a horrible situation to be in. And honestly it hasn't really gotten any better as I've gotten older. We will never have a good relationship. I'll never live up to their expectations, and they will never understand me. I have come to terms with that over the years."

Rory nodded as she listened.

"I do not want that type of relationship with you."

"We don't –" Rory started to interrupt her.

"Let me finish." Lorelai stopped her. "You don't have to keep things from me. Ever. No matter how bad whatever has happened might seem, you can tell me. You have to understand that."

Rory nodded.

"I'm here for you kid, no matter what." Lorelai moved closer to Rory. "You have to trust me." She said sincerely. "I'll always listen to whatever you have to say. We will work through it together."

"I know." Rory sighed. "I know that I should have told you."

"Why didn't you?" Lorelai wondered.

Rory stared down at the ground.

"I'm sorry if you thought that I have been distracted."

"I don't think that." Rory responded quickly. "I was trying to deflect."

"Oh. I see. Maybe I have taught you something after all." Lorelai smiled. "Then why didn't you tell me about your grades? Or about Ryan? You should have told me."

"I know." Rory realized her mistake. "I know that I should have told you. I didn't want you to be disappointed in me."

"Oh hon." Lorelai moved even closer to her daughter, so that she was now holding Rory. "You could never ever in a million billion years disappoint me. Ever." Lorelai told her daughter. "You have to know that."

"Going to Chilton has been my dream for so long. I'm failing." Rory said sadly.

"You aren't failing."

"Maybe I'm not supposed to go to an Ivy League school. Maybe it isn't for me. I should probably transfer back to Stars Hollow next year."

"Not gonna happen." Lorelai shook her head. "Everyone has a hard time every now and then. It happens. You've never really had a hard time. It was your turn."

"I feel so stupid."

"You are not stupid. You are very smart." Lorelai tried to tell her. "You are the brightest kid I have ever met."

Rory sighed.

Lorelai wiped away her tears. "Hon."

"I'm so sorry."

"I know." Lorelai held her tight. "I know you are."

"I should have told you about that Trevor kid. I knew he was up to no good."

Lorelai nodded. "Yes. You should have told me." She sighed. "You have to understand that what happened yesterday could have been extremely dangerous. Thank God for Lane."

"I promise to do better."

"I know you will." Lorelai gently played with Rory's hair. "Sweets, if you think you need one, we can get you a tutor."

"I don't need a tutor."

"Are you sure?" Lorelai asked.

Rory nodded. "Yes. I don't need a tutor. I'll figure it out."

"I want you to start showing me all of your grades every week."

"Really?"

"Yes. Just because you are smart, doesn't mean that I shouldn't keep up with how you are doing. That's on me." Lorelai explained.

"Okay." Rory agreed. "I'm sorry about causing trouble in front of Grandma."

"It's okay. She'll get over it." Lorelai smiled. "I love to see the veins pop in my mom's forehead."

"I don't know what possessed me."

"You are a teenager. It happens. I'm not used to it happening with you, but it does happen." Lorelai told her. "You know, I've got to punish you, right."

Rory nodded. She knew it was coming.

"I'm not punishing you because of the bad grades. Because I know you, and I know you are going to work really hard to do better." Lorelai wanted her to know that. "But I am going to punish you for lying to me and putting yourself in danger. You can't do that again, Rory."

"I won't. I promise." Rory said again.

"Well…I figure Dean is probably going to be punished for the next few weeks. I heard he was suspended."

Rory nodded.

"I already told Lane that she couldn't come over for a few weeks."

Rory nodded again.

"I want you to come home right after school for the next two weeks. Okay."

Rory nodded. That was fair. "I'm so, so sorry mom."

"I know you are." Lorelai held Rory tight. "It is going to be okay. We are going to be okay."

* * *

Later that night after Luke and Lorelai had talked about their conversations with their respective children, Luke found himself sitting at the kitchen table staring at the phone. He decided that he needed to talk to Liz.

He finally built up his nerve and dialed the last number that he had for his sister.

He frowned.

The line had been disconnected.

"Where the hell are you, Liz?"

Luke knew that he had to find his sister, for the sake of his nephew.

* * *

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	86. Super Proud

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 **I hope you all enjoy this update!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2.13: Super Proud**

Monday morning Lorelai volunteered to take Rory and Jess to school. Rory was nervous that her mom wanted to talk to her teachers about her grades. Lorelai assured her daughter that wasn't her purpose for visiting Chilton.

After walking in with the kids, Lorelai found herself walking into the headmaster's office.

"May I help you?" the prude looking woman sitting at the front desk asked her.

"I'm here to see the headmaster." Lorelai told her simply.

"Do you have an appointment?"

"I don't need an appointment."

"Yes you do." The woman looked at her computer screen. "That is how we do things here." She said rudely.

"Is there anyone currently in his office?" Lorelai asked with her arms crossed.

"No." The woman told her. "But you still need an appointment."

Lorelai walked by the woman. "Great. Then he can see me."

"Ma'am." The woman stood up.

Lorelai held out her hand. "I've got it from here."

She knocked on the door and heard him say come in. She turned to the woman. "See he invited me in." The woman frowned and Lorelai opened the door.

"Ms. Gilmore." Headmaster Charleston stood up. "I don't believe we have an appointment."

"I'm sorry about that." She closed the door behind her. "Totally my fault. I would have set one up a long time ago had I known you were going behind my back and discussing my kids with my mother." Lorelai exclaimed.

"Ms. Gilmore."

Lorelai waved her hand. "Don't Ms. Gilmore me. I know that you and my parents are friends." She walked further into the room. "You all go way back. I don't expect you to cut them off and suddenly decide you aren't "BFFs", but I do expect you to respect me as a parent. I expect you to respect my kids and their privacy. No matter if they are struggling or striving you should only talk to me or Luke Danes about them. If we choose to tell my parents, then that is our mistake. But it is our mistake to make. Not yours." She yelled at him. She was furious and needed to unload on someone. He was the perfect target.

"I understand your concern…." He said calmly.

"Don't." She interrupted him. "Don't you dare but or however me. There is no but or however needed in this scenario. I know that my parents are paying Rory's tuition. I'm sure you are aware of that face as well. But that does not give you a right to discuss her with them. You should have contacted me first about my daughter's grades."

"Yes." He agreed with her. "We should have."

Lorelai was surprised that he actually agreed with her.

"We assumed that Rory would come to you when her grades were less than stellar. You have told us before that you and Rory are close." He threw back at her.

Lorelai glared. There was the Headmaster Charleston she knew and did not love.

"From now on, we will make sure that you are aware of Rory's grades." He informed her. "And we will be careful not to discuss her grades with anyone other than you. We can send you a weekly progress report if you need it. But I am sure that Rory will be okay. She will bounce back from this."

"Thank you." Lorelai was happy with his response, but she would be watching out for him. She didn't really trust him. "That goes for Jess too."

"Of course. You and Mr. Danes."

"Right." Lorelai nodded. "I guess I should be going. You probably have actual appointments to get to."

"Wait. Ms. Gilmore." He stopped her as he opened his top drawer and pulled out some paper.

Lorelai stopped. Headmaster Charleston walked to her and handed her the paper. "This is Mr. Mariano's."

"What is this?"

"A paper he wrote. It was entered into a contest, and he won."

Lorelai began to smile. "He won? Does he know?"

"Oh yes. I talked to Mr. Mariano last week."

"Oh. We had a crazy weekend. I'm sure he forgot to mention it."

"I'm sure." Headmaster Charleston said slyly. "Next time, Ms. Gilmore, please make sure to make an appointment."

"Of course." Lorelai turned and walked away, rolling her eyes in the process. When she got into the hallway. She glanced at the title of Jess' paper, _At Home in an Unlikely Tiny Town_.

* * *

"Hey." Lane said as she walked up behind Ryan, who was busy grabbing some books out of his locker.

"Hey." He turned around after closing his locker. "How long do you think people are going to whisper about what happened?" He pointed to all the gossiping teenagers. "I didn't even do anything, and everyone is staring at me."

"I'm sorry." Lane furrowed her brow. "We should have told you."

"This sucks."

"At least you don't have to deal with Trevor anymore." Lane tried to look on the bright side. "And this is a small town, something major will happen with someone else in like five minutes. They'll totally be over the hidden drugs in your locker thing."

"I sure hope so." He sighed and walked toward his class.

"Hey, Ryan." Lane stopped him.

"Are we okay?" She needed the reassurance.

Ryan nodded. "Always."

Lane smiled, relieved by his answer.

* * *

At the Diner, Luke was cleaning the counter off, when Rachel walked in. "You are scrubbing that spot pretty hard." She noted. "It looks pretty clean."

"It's not clean." He said grumpily.

"You okay?" Rachel asked, already knowing the answer. She slipped onto a barstool, waiting for him to respond.

"Yes."

"You want to try again."

Luke looked up at her.

"You forget that I know you, Luke." She pointed at him. "I can tell that something is going on with you."

Luke sighed.

"Everything okay with Lorelai?"

"Of course." He said quickly.

"Then what is it?" Rachel asked again. She wasn't going to stop until he gave her an actual answer.

"Liz." Luke mumbled.

Rachel nodded. That was familiar information. A lot of Luke's problems were caused by Liz. "Oh." She paused. "What has she done now?"

Luke sighed and finally stopped scrubbing the same spot. He looked at Rachel. "I don't know."

"But you are upset about it."

Luke grumbled.

"What's going on?"

"I wish I knew." He said solemnly. "I've been trying to call her for the past few days. We haven't heard from her in over a year. I don't know what the hell is going on with her. I need to find my sister."

"Why? Is something wrong with Jess?"

Luke shook his head. "He needs to hear from his mom. I need to hear from her."

"You could go to New York." Rachel thought.

"I wouldn't even know where to look. She bounces around so much. I never know where she is." Luke couldn't believe his sister was such a bad mother. Their father would be so disappointed in her.

"I could help. I know some people in New York." Rachel offered.

Luke shook his head. "Do you realize how big New York is? It will be impossible to find her."

"We can try." Rachel wanted to help him. "I'll call my friends."

"Thanks." Luke was thankful for Rachel. "But I doubt we are going to find her. I just hope to God that she is okay." Luke didn't want to think about the possibility that Liz was no longer alive. Surely someone would have called him, if something had happened to her. "For Jess' sake, I hope she is okay."

* * *

"Lorelai." Emily said as she answered the door. "What are you doing here? I didn't know you were coming over. Did you tell me that you were coming over?"

"No. Mom. I need to talk to you." Lorelai walked into the house, and Emily closed the door.

"I was just heading out."

"This won't take long." Lorelai folded her arms.

Emily rolled her eyes. "Lorelai. Really. I don't have time to listen to you yell at me again."

"I'm not here to yell at you." She said calmly.

"I find that hard to believe."

"Mom." Lorelai followed her mother into the sitting room.

"Lorelai. I really do have somewhere to be."

"If you'll stay put this wouldn't take that long." Lorelai told her mother.

"Alright, Lorelai. I'm listening." Emily stopped moving and focused her attention on Lorelai.

"I am thankful for everything that you do for my kids. They are very lucky to have you as a grandmother." Lorelai was surprised she was telling her that, but it was true. Emily had always been a better grandmother than a mother.

"What's the catch?" Emily wasn't buying it.

"It's the truth."

"You think I am a good grandmother, but you don't want me to know anything about my grandchildren's life."

"I want you to be their grandmother." Lorelai said plainly, noticing the look on her mom's face. "And I want you to let me be their mom. The parent. You promised me that you would try."

Emily sighed. "I am trying. I didn't know Hanlin was going to tell me anything about Rory and Jess. I didn't ask him too."

Lorelai's smiled creeped across her face.

"What?" Emily noticed Lorelai's facial change.

"You said Jess. You didn't call him Jerry or Jeff or Gene. You called him Jess." Lorelai was surprised. That was an improvement.

"That's his name." Emily said as if she had always gotten it right.

"Yes it is." Lorelai chuckled.

"Lorelai, I really need to be going."

"Right. You have a thing."

"Yes I do. I didn't know that you were coming. I might could have rescheduled."

"I doubt it." Lorelai said softly. Her mother wasn't one to reschedule any of her things for anything. "Rory is going to be fine." Lorelai told her mother. "She is going to work on her grades, and she is going to get into an Ivy League school. I know that because I know Rory."

"I'm not worried about Rory. She is a Gilmore. She will be fine." Emily stated calmly. "Gilmore's always succeed."

"That's right." Lorelai nodded. "I guess I will get out of here so that you can get to your thing." She turned to walk away.

"Lorelai." Emily stopped her and Lorelai turned around.

"Yes."

"You left before we could finish dinner the other night. I think that means you owe me another dinner."

Lorelai shook her head. Of course. "I will see you on Friday."

"We should get another dinner. An extra dinner."

Lorelai shook her head again. "You get a dinner every Friday night, mom. You can tack the extra dinner onto the end of our Friday night dinners." She smiled before walking out of the mansion.

* * *

Rory and Jess were standing outside of Chilton. "Do you know why your mom has decided that she has to bring us to school and pick us up?"

Rory nodded. "She doesn't trust me anymore."

"That's bull. You are the most trustworthy person I know." Jess told her. "I think we would be fine taking the bus."

"I think she will let us tomorrow. She wanted to talk to the headmaster today."

"Oh."

Rory sighed. "I'm sorry that I pulled you into my mess."

"You can pull me into your mess anytime, Rory. That's what I'm here for." Jess smiled. "We are family." He couldn't believe he was saying that, but it was true. For the first time in his life, he felt like he had a family. He was a part of a family, and lucky for him, it was a good family.

Rory smiled back at him. "I'm really glad I have another brother looking out for me."

"You don't need anyone to look after you, Rory." Jess informed her. "But you have us if you need us."

Rory was happy to know that. She was pretty lucky to have so many people looking after her.

"Next time, make sure you tell me. I can help. I'm the master of sneaking around."

"There won't be a next time." Rory was sure of that. She hated disappointing people.

* * *

Lorelai, Rory, and Jess arrived at home. Both kids started to get out of the car. "Hey Jess, will you hang back for a minute?"

Rory gave him a look and got out of the car.

"Sure." Jess sat back in his seat. He was sure that she was going to talk to him about what he had talked to his uncle about.

"I think that you should show this to your uncle." Lorelai handed him the paper that Headmaster Charleston had given to her.

Jess looked up at her once he realized what she had. "How did you get this?"

"It dropped out of the sky like rain." Lorelai smiled.

"He shouldn't have given this to you." Jess looked at it.

"Nope." She agreed. "You should have given to us. You won an award, Jess. That's awesome."

"It isn't a big deal."

"It is a huge deal." Lorelai said excitedly. "We need to have pie to celebrate."

"I don't want to celebrate." Jess sighed. "Seriously. I want to pretend like I never wrote it."

"That's crazy talk, my friend. This is really good."

"You read it?" He was a little embarrassed.

"Of course I read it. One day I will be able to say that I knew you when. You are going to be a big deal one day."

Jess shook his head.

"I was nervous when I moved to Stars Hollow. I was so afraid that I was making a mistake. It is so small and filled with characters, but you were write about this town." She turned to one of the pages. "Sometimes different, weird, and unlikely make a good team. Sometimes when you least expect it, the world will bring you exactly what you needed at just the right time." She read a quote from his story. "You should show this to your uncle."

"He doesn't want to see this."

"Yes he will." She said excitedly. "He will be so proud of you. You should let him."

Jess looked down at the paper. "I don't know if I want him to read it. It is kind of personal."

"Well sorry. I'm not big on personal boundaries, I guess. I must get that from my mom." She joked.

Jess thought for a minute. "Thanks, Lorelai."

"I'm really proud of you, hon, you deserve all the good things that come your way." Lorelai touched his shoulder gently.

Jess nodded, and they both got out of the car.

Lorelai watched as Jess walked into the house, and showed his uncle the paper.

Luke was more proud than Lorelai had even expected.

He was super proud.

* * *

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	87. Two Months Later

**This was the hardest chapter to write. I still don't think that I'm happy with it. I hope you guys are still reading this story. Thanks for sticking with me!**

 **Hope you enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2.14 Two Months Later**

Two months had come and gone in Stars Hollow. The Gilmore/Danes/Marianos were moving right along. School was almost over, much to Ryan and Jess's happiness. Rory had finally hit her stride at Chilton. She hadn't gotten anything less than an A since her talk with her mom. She didn't want school to end, but Jess reminded her that it would be there after summer break, unfortunately.

Jess's attitude had gotten much better since his talk with Luke, but Luke had a feeling that Jess would have a hard time if he knew that no one could find Liz. Luke felt bad for not telling Jess, but he didn't want to worry him. He wanted Jess to focus on his schoolwork and his finals. That's all he needed to worry about.

Ryan's basketball games were over, but the coach was still working with him three times a week. The coach had even suggested that Ryan go to basketball camp this summer. Luke thought it was a good idea for Ryan to go to camp and obtain more experience. Lorelai, on the other hand, didn't want her baby to be gone for six weeks for the summer. She had movie marathons planned and vacations on her mind. Ryan wasn't sure if he wanted to go, but the coach said he had some time to decide. Lorelai agreed to let him go, if that was what he wanted. They were all waiting on his decision.

Ruby was Ruby. She was preparing for her upcoming dance recital. Nonstop practicing. Lorelai was still amazed that her daughter had coordination. It amazed her. She was one proud mama, but all the twirling was making her head spin. There was a lot of twirling.

Lorelai and Luke were doing great. Luke was stressed about Liz, but their relationship was better and stronger than ever. Lorelai loved how her life was going. So did Luke. He couldn't wait until the house was complete. Then it would truly feel like their home. Especially since they were currently sleeping in the living room, while the newly added master bedroom was being finished. Rory had officially moved upstairs into the boy's room, and the boys had moved into their new room. Everything was almost perfect.

Lorelai was dealing with Mia's impending departure. Mia had decided that she was going to leave Stars Hollow during the summer. She was already in North Carolina. Lorelai was sad. She was going to miss Mia's wisdom and friendship. Mia promised that just because she was leaving, it didn't mean that they wouldn't still be friends. Lorelai knew that, but she was also aware that things would not be the same, and she was also afraid of letting Mia down. What if she couldn't run the Inn without Mia? Mia believed in her, and Lorelai needed to believe in herself.

Saturday morning, Lorelai walked into the kitchen. "Wow." She smelled the air. "Fresh brewed coffee." She noticed cups from Luke's. "Luke." She called out for him as she grabbed a cup of coffee.

"Hey." He walked out of the almost finished master bedroom. "What's wrong?" He held onto his tool belt.

"Oh wow." Lorelai swooned. "I love when you wear the tool belt. Can you hurry up and finish that bedroom?" She walked towards him and kissed his lips.

"Lorelai." He smiled. "Tom's guys are right in there."

"So." She kissed him again.

"You called me in here for some reason." Luke noted. "Was it for this?"

"Always." She kissed him again and then smiled. "Actually, I was curious about this coffee. Did you go to the diner to bring it back for me?"

"I know you have a big day today, and I know how much you like that coffee." He pointed. "Even though I make the coffee here, and I am Luke. It should be the same. You say that it is not the same. So I went to the diner. I made the coffee. I put the coffee in the cups. I brought the coffee here. Now you can drink the coffee." He explained to her.

A big smile crept across her face. "I love you. Just so you know, it is different. It taste better when you make it at the diner. I can't explain it, but it just does."

"I'll take your word for it." He kissed her cheek. "I should probably get back to work. I would like to have this done today."

"Do you really think that you'll have it done today?"

"I hope so. I'm tired of sleeping in the living room."

"Yeah no kidding." Lorelai took her coffee, grabbed a poptart, and sat at the table. "Join me for a minute."

"Okay." He sat beside her. She offered him a poptart. "No thanks."

"I still don't understand your hatred for poptarts."

"They are horrible for you." He told her. "So is that coffee."

"Yet you still make it for me every morning." Lorelai said as if she had won.

"I guess I'll never learn." He thought for a moment. "How are you feeling? You know, about today."

She nodded. "I'm fine." She hadn't needed the clarification about what he was referring to.

"I should go with you." Luke told her again. It took her hours to convince him that she, Ryan, and Rory needed to do this on their own. Obviously, he wasn't as convinced as she thought.

"We need to do this."

"I don't trust, Christopher." Luke told her for the umpteenth time. "I'll never trust him."

"He is in prison, Luke. I think all the guards there will keep us safe." She took a sip of her coffee. "Besides, Christopher isn't dangerous. He has made mistakes, but he would never physically hurt us."

"Do I need to remind you that you were hit by car because of that man?" Luke folded his arms.

"He wasn't driving the car."

"We aren't going to agree on this." He finally told her.

"No. We aren't. But the kids asked me to take them to see their dad. I love that you want to go, but I think it will go better if we go alone." Lorelai sighed. This had been a battle ever since the kids had asked her to take them to see Christopher, and she had talked to Luke about it. He was against it at first, and technically probably still was, but he was trying to be understanding. It was hard for him though.

"Did they say why they wanted to see Christopher?" He asked for the thousandth time. Self-consciously he thought it had something to do with him. Maybe they weren't happy having him around.

"No." She answered for the thousandth time. "All they told me was that they wanted to see Christopher." Lorelai asked the kids several times why they wanted to see their father, but the answer was always because they hadn't seen him in a while. She didn't buy it, but she wasn't going to keep her kids away from their father. "My dad never should have made Christopher sign away his rights. Rather I like it or not, he is their father."

Luke nodded. "I know. I get it. I like thinking that he isn't their father. Forgetting that he even exists."

"I like to do that too." She reached for his hands. "My kids are really lucky to have you in their lives. I know they feel that way too."

Luke didn't say anything. He knew that she was right.

"We are all a family." Lorelai reminded him. "You, me, Rory, Ryan, Jess, and little Ruby. All of us are in this together."

"I really think I should go with you today."

Lorelai gave him a look. "I need you to stay home with Ruby. She has been looking forward to it all week." She reminded him. "And I thought that you wanted to finish the house this weekend."

"I do." Luke admitted. "I'm also looking forward to spending time with Ruby."

"Are you sure you are going to be able to keep up with her and work on the house?"

Luke nodded. "I think I have it under control. I have watched Ruby many times before."

"I know that." Lorelai said. "But she can be a handful."

"I've got it under control. Besides, Jess will be here. He can help." He said calmly. "We will be fine." He leaned over and kissed her forehead. "You will remember to call me, if you need me, right?"

"Goes both ways buddy." She squeezed his hand.

"Mom." Rory said as she and Ryan walked downstairs.

"In here." Lorelai called out to them as she stood up. "Oh wow. Look at you two. Already to go. So early in the morning."

"Yep. But I think we are the ones who should be surprised that you are actually awake." Ryan pointed at his mom. "We get all our bad habits from you."

"You are welcome. All of your bad habits are your best habits." She joked as Luke shook his head and made a weird smile, causing Rory to chuckle.

Lorelai turned to Luke. "I know you just made a face, and I'm okay with that." She laughed. "We better get on the road. I wonder if my Rubear is still asleep?" She walked to her little girl's room and peaked inside. Ruby was fast asleep.

"I can't believe she can sleep through all the repairs." Rory thought.

"I'll wake her up soon." Luke told Lorelai. "You guys have fun." He said awkwardly.

"Thanks." Ryan gave him a look. "You too." Ryan pointed and walked out of the room.

"Bye Luke." Rory gave him an unexpected hug and then followed her brother outside.

"Bye Rory." Luke said with a smile. He was still nervous about their visit with Christopher.

Lorelai touched his shoulder. "I will call you when we are leaving the prison." She gave him a kiss. "I love you."

Luke nodded.

"Do whatever you can to get that room fixed." She gave him another kiss. "I want to see you in nothing but that tool belt."

"Bye Lorelai." He shook his head. God, he loved that woman. He walked into the living room to see Jess walking downstairs with his backpack. "Hey kid, where are you going?"

"To Paris'. She has decided that the one hundred hours that we have already studied is not enough." Jess said dramatically.

"I thought you were going to stay here today."

"I would love to stay here today. Believe me. But I really don't want to hear yet another rant from Paris Gellar." Jess grabbed a pen off of the counter.

"You've been spending a lot of time with Paris."

"I know." Jess clearly didn't pick up what his uncle was alluding to. "I'm so ready for the summer. Maybe she will take a break from studying." Jess said and then laughed. "Who am I kidding? Paris never takes a break."

"Do you like Paris?"

"Yeah." Jess shrugged, still not getting the real meaning of the question. "She's a little weird. Well. Really weird. But she has helped me with school. She could be worse I guess."

"Jess." Luke stopped him.

"Yeah."

"Do you like her?" He repeated and gave Jess a look.

"Oh." Jess finally realized what his uncle was talking about. "We are friends. That's it."

"Are you sure that she knows that?"

"Paris isn't interested in me like that. She doesn't want a boyfriend. She is too focused on school. Besides, I don't even think she really likes me as a person."

"But Jess." Luke knew enough to know that Paris probably had feelings for his nephew.

"We are just friends." Jess said plainly. "That's it."

"Okay. You should probably make sure that she knows that."

"She does." He walked to the door. "See ya later."

"Don't stay out too late."

"I won't." Jess said as he walked out of the house.

Luke sighed. At least they were communicating.

"Luuuke." Ruby came running out of her room. "Is it time to play?" She said excitedly.

"Oh wait. Jess." Luke remembered. "You are supposed to help me with Ruby." It was too late. Jess was already gone.

"It's just you and me, buddy. And it is time to play." Ruby smiled happily and ran into Luke's arms. "Let's go."

Luke sighed. This might be harder than he thought. "Let's go."

* * *

"So." Lorelai said as she drove down the road. "Have you guys thought about what you are going to say to your dad?"

Ryan, who was sitting in the front seat, shrugged. "I'm just going to wing it."

"Wing it?" Lorelai gave him a look. "You two are the ones who wanted to see him. I figured you had a whole speech planned."

"I don't need to have a speech planned." Ryan said. "It will come to me when I see him."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "What about you, Rory?" Lorelai quickly looked to the back seat. "I know you like your speeches."

Rory shrugged. She wasn't sure what to say. This trip had been Ryan's idea.

"Alright." Lorelai sighed. "Are you guys going to tell me why you want to see your dad?" They hadn't really explained anything to her. "You haven't seen him in a while. You know. Since the accident." Maybe that was what was bothering her. She hadn't seen Christopher since the accident. Maybe she should have. Closure. She thought she had closure. But maybe she didn't. Maybe she needed it.

"He is our dad." Ryan finally responded as if he had to think long and hard about the answer.

"Right." That was right, she thought. He was definitely their father. "You guys just haven't mentioned wanting to see him before."

"We thought it was time." Rory chimed in.

"Well good." Lorelai focused on the road. She would have to wait and see what they talked about when they got to the prison. Wow. She thought. That was something she never thought she would ever say. She really did wonder how seeing Christopher again would make her feel.

"Can we turn the tunes up?" Ryan asked knocking Lorelai out of her thoughts. "This silence is killing me." He joked.

"Of course." She turned the radio up. Carole King blaring through the speakers. Everything was going to be okay. "The silence is killing me too."

* * *

Paris and Jess were sitting in Paris' living room studying. They hadn't talked much since Jess arrived. Paris was in complete study mode. Jess was having a difficult time focusing on his notes. He couldn't stop thinking about what his uncle had said about Paris. Jess had never really thought about it before. He enjoyed Paris' friendship far too much to ever have a relationship with her. He didn't think of her that way, but he didn't want to lead her on. He didn't ever want to hurt her.

"Are you okay?" Paris poked him. "I've already read twenty pages, and you've been stuck on that same page this whole time. I mean I am a very fast reader. I have great comprehension skills, but so do you. So, what's going on?"

Jess didn't know if he should tell her. "Nothing."

"Liar." Paris said plainly. "What's up with you? I need to know. I can't focus if you aren't focused. And if I can't focus then I will fail. If I fail, I will have to drop out of school and turn to prostitution. Is that what you want for me?" She said dramatically.

Jess shook his head. "You are being dramatic."

"And you are distracting me."

"Fine." Jess gave in. "I like being your friend." He stated.

"I like being your friend too." She gave him a look. She wasn't sure where he was going with all of this.

"We make good friends, surprisingly."

"It isn't that surprising." Paris responded. "We are both intellectual people who have an appreciation for reading and education."

"Right." Jess sighed. He wished his uncle hadn't put the thoughts into his head. "I don't want to ruin our friendship."

"Why would we ruin our friendship?" Paris asked, still acting confused about the conversation.

"My uncle thinks that you have a crush on me." Jess said, realizing he should have said it differently by the look on her face.

"We are friends." Paris realized what Jess was trying to say. "And you are uncle hasn't been around me that many times. Why would he assume that I like you? What have you told him?"

"I haven't told him anything."

"Well then why would he think that, Jess?" Paris asked loudly.

This was not going the way Jess had hoped it would. He shouldn't have said anything. His uncle had clearly been wrong. "I don't know. He thinks differently now that he is with Lorelai."

Paris rolled her eyes. "We are friends." Paris said defensively. "That's it." She stood up. "I can't believe you would think I would have some kind of crush on you. That's ridiculous. Men and women can be friends without an implication that they like each other. Why didn't your uncle assume that you had a crush on me?"

"Paris." He realized that he really shouldn't have said anything. "I'm sorry."

Paris shook her head. "I need some water." She walked out of the room, even though she had a full glass of water sitting on the table.

"Paris." Jess sighed. That was a disaster.

In the hallway, Paris leaned against the wall. She liked being friends with Jess, but she did secretly have a crush on him. It was almost impossible not to. He was hot. Well hotter than anyone else at Chilton. But he was also smart and even sensitive, although he would never admit it. But it was clear to Paris that she had to get over it. Jess did not feel the same way about her, and he probably never would. That was just how things worked in Paris' life.

* * *

Lorelai, Ryan, and Rory were standing outside of the visiting area at the prison. "Are you guys nervous?" Lorelai asked. She was nervous. More nervous than she thought.

Both kids shook their heads.

Lorelai nodded. "Well it is about time." She pointed to the open door and the big security office standing officer. "Hi sir. I promise we will follow all the rules. We are rule followers. We never really thought we would be in a prison. Well my parents probably thought I would, but I got pregnant with these two. They saved me from prison. Thanks, guys."

The guard shook his head. "Ma'am." He said politely.

"Mom." Rory stopped her mom from talking and then entering the room. "We want to see dad without you." She had been nominated to tell her mom their plan. Well, she had lost a game of rock, paper, scissors.

Lorelai stopped. "What? Because of my rant. I'm ranter. You know that." She shook her head. "I didn't come all this way not to go in there to see your dad."

"We need to do it on our own." Ryan added.

Lorelai continued to shake her head. "I'm going in there first." She informed them.

"You don't need to do that." Ryan argued. "We will be fine."

"I understand that, but I am going to talk to him first." She realized that it was important for her to have closure where Christopher was concerned. She also wanted to make sure that Christopher didn't hurt her kids or let them down any further. "It is not up for discussion." She warned them before either one of them could argue with her. "Stay here. I won't be long. I don't want to cut into your time with him." She looked up at the guard. "Will you watch them for me?"

The guard gave her a look.

She gave him her best. "Thanks." She gave them both a kiss on the forehead before walking into the visiting room. It was like she had been hit by a ton of bricks when she saw Christopher sitting at his chosen table. He looked surprised to see her. Ryan had called to tell him they were coming, but maybe he hadn't mentioned that she would be with them. She slowly made her way to the table.

"Lor." He said softly. She looked great, so much better than when he had last seen her.

"No touching." The guard reminded her. It was one of the rules they had mentioned when Lorelai and the kids had handed all of their belongings over.

"Right." She looked at Christopher as they sat down. "I don't know why they won't let us touch. They frisked us on the way in. You should have seen the look on Rory's face."

"I'm sorry." Christopher said sadly. "I hate that they have to come to a place like this to see me."

"At least they know where you are." Lorelai quipped.

"I deserve that." He admitted. "I've already told you how sorry that I was for not being around. You deserved better. They deserved better." He looked around. "They are here?" He questioned.

Lorelai nodded. "Yes. Rory and Ryan are here."

"I'm glad you didn't bring Ruby. I never want her to have to come to a place like this."

Lorelai nodded. "You and me both." She told him. "Here." She pulled a picture out of her pocket. They hadn't confiscated it from her earlier. She was glad. She wasn't sure what they were going to take from her.

"Wow." Christopher stared at the picture. It was of Ruby in her dance costume. "She has gotten so big. And she is a dancer."

"Yeah. I can't believe it, but she is actually good." Lorelai smiled as she talked about her little girl. "Really good. She is about to have a dance recital soon."

"I wish I could be there." His face dropped.

Lorelai didn't say anything. She could tell that it was hard for him, but in the end he had brought this on himself.

"I bet she is really smart."

"She is probably the smartest kid that we have."

"Really?" Chris smiled.

"All of our kids are really smart." Lorelai informed him. "We are pretty lucky."

"Yeah." He sighed. "The kids didn't want to come in?'

"They want to talk to you alone." Lorelai told him.

"Oh."

"They are being kind of secretive." Lorelai thought. "I have no idea why they wanted to come."

"I was hoping it was because they missed me." He gave her a look. "But I know that's not true."

"It could be true."

"It isn't." Christopher knew that.

"You know." Lorelai paused and collected her thought. "You shouldn't have signed over your rights to our children without talking to me first." She finally told him. "I should have been involved in that decision."

"Your dad."

"Don't." Lorelai stopped him. "Don't do that. Don't blame it on my dad. You made the decision. You signed that paper. Not my dad. I know he can be manipulative and bossy, but you are grown ass man." She let him have it but quietly. She didn't want to make a scene.

"I thought it was best for them. I thought it was what they would want."

"You have no idea what they would want." Lorelai rolled her eyes. "We should have talked about it. You should have waited until I was out of the hospital."

"I'm sorry, Lorelai." Christopher didn't know what else to say. "I made yet another mistake."

"I don't know what they want to say to you today, but I wanted to talk to you first because I don't want you to hurt them again." Lorelai found tears trickling in her eyes. "It is my job to protect them, even from their father."

Christopher also had tears in his eyes. "I'm so sorry." Was all that he could say. "More than you will ever know."

Lorelai stood up. "I'll go get them."

"Thank you for bringing them." He said softly.

"It was their choice." She replied as she walked off to get her children. Seeing Christopher had been harder than she thought it would be. She was still very angry with him, even more than she realized. But she couldn't stop her kids from seeing their father.

* * *

Paris was sitting in her kitchen sipping on her water. She hadn't had the courage to go back in the room with Jess. She knew Jess was right about them being friends, but she wasn't sure her feelings for him would go away.

"Hey." Jess said as he walked into the kitchen. "I think I'm going to go." He said he pointed towards the door.

Paris looked up at him and thought about what you were going to say. "You don't have to go."

"I'm sorry about what I said. I shouldn't have listened to my uncle." Jess apologized. "I hardly ever do. I don't know why I did today."

"I don't want anything to ruin our friendship." She admitted. "I know why you accused me of having a crush on you." Paris looked him in the eye.

Jess sat down next to her. "Because of my uncle."

Paris shook her head. "Nope. You want someone to have a crush on you. I think it is time we found you a girlfriend." Paris realized this was the only way to get over her feelings for him. She had to find him someone else.

Jess shook his head, rolled his eyes, and smirked. "No."

Paris nodded. "Yes. You are a hot commodity at Chilton."

"No one likes me."

"Yes they do. There is something about a brooding sixteen-year-old." Paris smiled. "Trust me."

Jess shrugged. "I don't know."

"I think it is a great idea. I will find you a girlfriend."

Jess didn't think that was such a good idea, but he didn't want to upset Paris again. "I'll think about it." He thought that was a fair response.

"Alright. Now we have taken a break for long enough." Paris stood up. "We have got to keep study."

"You were the one that took the break." Jess reminded her as they started to walk back to the living room.

"It was your fault." Paris countered. "All your fault."

Jess laughed. He hoped Paris understood that they were better off as friends.

* * *

"Alright Ruby." Luke said as he put his pretend tea cup down and stood up. "I really do need to start working. Your mommy really wants to sleep in the new room tonight."

"But I want to play." Ruby pouted.

Luke scrunched his nose. He hated when she did that. Her pout was really hard to resist. "We can play later." He assured her.

Ruby sighed heavily and unhappily. "Fine." She said grumpily. "But I don't like it."

"I know." He kissed the top of her forehead. "I'll make it up to you."

Before he could get to work, the doorbell rang.

"Saved by the bell." Ruby laughed.

Luke shook his head. "Your mommy lets you watch too much TV."

Ruby jumped up to answer the door. "I'm going to beat you."

Luke smiled and followed her to the door.

"Look Luke. It's Rachel."

"Hey Rachel."

"Hi Luke."

"Where's Artie?" Ruby asked.

"Come it Rachel." Luke said before Rachel could answer.

"He is with Miss Patti. She always takes him from me on Saturdays."

"Oh. I love that little guy." Ruby smiled. "Can I go outside and play?" Ruby asked.

"Sure. Stay in our yard."

"Or Babette's." She countered.

"Okay."

"Thanks, Luke." Ruby ran out of the house.

"She is full of energy. Even more energy than Artie." Rachel said as she and Luke walked further into the house.

"Yeah. I think she gets that from her mom."

Rachel nodded.

"So what brings you by?"

Rachel reaches into her pocket. "Here."

Luke examined the paper. "What is this?"

"My guys came through." She pointed. "That's where you can find Liz."

"Really?"

Rachel nodded. "Yep."

Luke shook her head. "At least she isn't dead." He said honestly. That had been one of his biggest fears.

"How does this make you feel?"

Luke sighed. "I don't know. I feel bad for Jess. She is always disappointing him."

"And you too?" Rachel noted.

Luke was about to speak but they heard Ruby screaming outside. "Oh God, Ruby." He ran out of the house and found Ruby holding knee and crying. "Ruby, sweetie, what happened?"

She couldn't tell him because she was crying.

Luke noticed she was under the tree. "Were you climbing the tree?"

Ruby nodded through her tears.

"Oh Ruby."

"I'm…Sorry." She sniffled.

Luke touched her faced softly. "It's okay. Let's look at that knee." He touched it.

"Ow." She winced in pain. "It's bleeding."

"I think it is going to be okay, though." He picked her up. "I'll get you all cleaned up."

"You can't put anything on it. It will hurt."

"If you let me clean it up, I will go get you some ice cream to make it all better."

"Mommy says that ice cream makes everything better." She wiped away her tears.

"Your mommy is probably right." Luke smiled at the little girl. He was so thankful to have her in his life.

"I love you, Luke." Ruby told him with a hug.

Luke was taken aback. That was the first time she had actually said it aloud to him. "I love you, too, my sweet Ruby."

* * *

Lorelai patiently waited outside of the prisoner visiting room. She wished that she knew what they were saying to him. She didn't like being left out.

Inside the visiting room, Ryan and Rory were sitting with their father. "Wow." Christopher said yet again. "I can't believe you guys are here."

Neither teenager said anything.

"I have really missed you." Christopher said once he realized they weren't speaking. They were just staring at him. "So." He didn't know what else to say. "How is school?"

"Fine." Ryan said first.

"Good."

"You are going to Chilton, Rory. That's great. It is a great school."

"Yeah."

"Okay guys. We don't have very long together. What's going on?" Christopher asked, sensing some issues.

Rory and Ryan shared looks.

"Guys?" Christopher sighed.

"You don't want to be our dad anymore, right?" Ryan asked.

"Ryan."

"You signed over your rights." Rory added.

"I did that because your grandfather told me it was for the best." Christopher defended his actions.

"It's what you wanted?" Ryan asked.

"Ryan." Christopher sighed. "It's not that simple."

"It isn't like you were there for us before you signed away your rights." Rory reminded him.

"Rory, I am so sorry for all of the mistakes that I have made. I wish that I could take them back."

"But you can't." Ryan interrupted. "You can't take it back."

"I know." Christopher agreed. "And I can't make it up to you from inside this place." He knew that. "Regardless of what the two of you may think, it was the hardest decision I ever had to make. But it wasn't the wrong one. You two and your sister deserve better than me."

"We want Luke to be our dad." Rory informed him.

Christopher wasn't surprised by this announcement, but it still broke his heart. "Oh."

"He already kind of is." Ryan tried to make it better. "Mom doesn't know that is why we wanted to come. We haven't told anyone about our decision."

"You want to make it official?" Christopher asked.

Ryan nodded. "Yeah."

"You would take his last name?" Christopher wondered.

"Probably not." Rory answered. "I think we are forever Gilmores." She smiled.

"Right." Christopher always hated that they didn't have his last name, but maybe that had always been for the best. "I've already signed over my rights. You didn't have to ask me for permission."

"We aren't asking for permission." Ryan told him. "We wanted you to know what we had planned and to make sure that you didn't want to be our father."

"I'm sorry that I took being your father for granted." Christopher said sincerely. He looked at both of his kids. "I don't think Luke will take either of you for granted."

"Times up." The guard announced.

"You guys can come visit again if you want to and your mom and Luke are okay with it." Christopher said as he stood up. "It was so good to see you guys."

"See ya." Ryan said as he stood up.

Rory nodded. It had been really hard for her to see her dad. "Bye. Dad." She followed Ryan to the hallway.

"Hey." Lorelai stood up. "How did it go?"

"Fine." Ryan answered. "Are you ready?"

"Yes. I'm ready. Are you guys okay?" She looked at Ryan and then Rory.

Rory nodded. "We are okay."

"What did you guys talk about?" Lorelai asked. She was so curios. It was killing her not to know.

"Stuff." Ryan answered.

"That's not an answer."

"It doesn't matter what we talked about." Ryan informed her. "We are ready to go home."

"Me too." She put her arms around both of them. "Let's get home."

* * *

Later that night, Lorelai was sitting on her new bed in her newly remodeled master bedroom. She was so happy that Luke was able to help get it finished. "Hey handyman." She pointed at Luke as he entered the bedroom. "This is the most amazing room I've ever been in. Seriously. I don't think I ever want to leave."

"It is pretty great." Luke sat on the bed with her. "This house is finally beginning to feel like ours."

"It is ours." She held his hand and then kissed his cheek.

"How are you feeling after seeing Christopher?"

"I'm okay. I got to come home to you." She squeezed his shoulder. "How are you? You said Rachel came by."

"Yeah. She found Liz."

"That's good, right." Lorelai wasn't sure. She couldn't tell by the look on his face.

"I want to adopt Jess." Luke blurted out. "I want him to know that he is a part of this family forever. Our family. I don't want him to worry about being replaced when you and I start having kids."

Lorelai froze. She still hadn't told Luke that she didn't want any more kids.

"Are you okay with that? With me adopting Jess?" He asked.

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah. I think that is a great idea."

"I'm going to go to New York and tell her." Luke informed her. "Please don't say anything to Jess while I am gone."

"I won't."

Luke smiled. "At least my sister is alive."

"Yeah." Lorelai couldn't hear anything else Luke was saying. Her mind was on the thought of having more kids with Luke. She knew he was going to be devastated when he found out the truth. She wasn't sure that he would be able to get over her not wanting more kids, especially since it seemed that he really did.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	88. Finding Liz

**I am so sorry that I have not posted in a million years. I have not forgotten about this story. I hope that someone is still interested in reading.**

 **Thanks for sticking with me! Enjoy this chapter! I hope to post the next one soon!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2.15 Finding Liz**

Lorelai walked into the kitchen from her new master suite. It had been really nice to be in their new bedroom. It was even better to have the house finished. It truly felt like their home now. She was happy to see that the coffee was already made. Luke must have made it before he left for New York. He had waited a week before heading that way. He didn't want Jess or the other kids to know what he was doing or who he was going to see. Specifically Jess.

She poured herself a cup of his delicious coffee. It was a great way to start the day. She wished that Luke was with her, but she understood that he had to see his sister. It was the best thing for Jess. Lorelai was happy that Luke wanted to adopt Jess. She thought it would be good for Jess. She wanted him to feel like he was part of the family. Luke wanted to wait to tell Jess until after he had spoken to Liz.

Lorelai also hadn't told Luke how she felt about more kids. She hated that she kept putting it off, but he had been too excited about the prospect of making Jess his legal son. She didn't want to ruin his good mood. She knew that it was something that they should have talked about many moons ago, but for some reason, she preferred to avoid the subject. She was afraid it would be the one deal breaker for Luke, and she didn't want to find out.

"Where's Luke?" Jess said as he walked into the kitchen and headed straight to the refrigerator.

"Oh. Don't you remember?" Lorelai stammered. "You know. He had that…" She couldn't remember what excuse Luke had told the kids. It was something about a work trip. "You know. That work trip thing."

"What was it for again?" Jess asked. He had been suspicious ever since his uncle told him he was going out of town for business. That didn't make any sense. His Uncle Luke never went out of town for business.

"The Burger Convention." Lorelai knew it sounded silly as soon as she said it. The look on Jess' face didn't make her feel any better. "It's for small diner owners."

"He's never gone before." Jess said simply.

"Right. But he thought he might need to start." Lorelai lied, and she had a feeling Jess knew that she was lying. "It is supposed to help him with business. Teach him new ways to flip a burger. New tricks." She continued to add.

Jess shook his head. "I hope he didn't have to pay to attend. Seems like a big waste of money to me. This is Stars Hollow. He could drop his hamburgers on the ground and still have business." He grabbed the milk from the fridge and the cereal from the cabinet.

"You are absolutely right. We will tell him not to go again." She took a sip of her coffee. She had really messed that conversation completely up.

"Sure." Jess wasn't buying it.

Before Lorelai could say anything else, Ryan ran into the kitchen. "Where's the fire?" She asked.

"I've got to go. The sooner I get to school, the sooner summer vacation can officially start." He said excitedly.

"You still have to take and pass your history final." Lorelai reminded him.

"Yeah. Yeah. I know."

"Or it will be summer school for you." She bopped him on the nose.

"Mom you can't even ruin my day with a nose bop." He bopped her nose.

"Hey." She smiled.

"I'm so ready for summer break."

"Really. We couldn't tell." Lorelai joked.

Rory walked into the kitchen. She didn't look as happy as her brother. "Hey kiddo. What's with the long face?"

"I finally got the hang of Chilton and now its summer time." She grabbed a cup from the cabinet and poured herself a cup of coffee. "I'm not ready for it to end."

"But you get to spend some much needed summer time with Dean." Lorelai told her with googly eyes.

"He will be gone for part of the summer." Rory said sadly. "But he promised to call me every single day."

"Makes me want to puke." Ryan made gagging noises, making Rory punch him in the shoulder.

"Alright. Please no fighting this early in the morning." Lorelai told them. "Especially when Luke isn't here to help me."

"When will he be back?" Ryan asked.

"He wasn't sure."

"Didn't the conference have an end date?" Rory asked.

"He'll probably be home in three days."

Jess furrowed his brow. Something was fishy.

"So how's the new living quarters?" Lorelai quickly changed the subject.

"Great. But I do miss Ruby." Rory replied. "Is she still asleep?"

"She stayed at Sookie's last night. Remember."

"Oh. That's right." Rory had forgotten. "She spends more time with other people than us."

"True story." Lorelai smiled. "We need to work on being more fun. Watch more TV. Drink more coffee. Eat more junk food."

"Don't let Luke hear you say that. He may have a heart attack." Ryan quipped.

"He's already convinced that you are going to have one." Jess pointed out as he stood up. "Ready, Rory?"

"Ready." She grabbed her bag.

"Good luck, guys." She hugged them both, causing Jess to shrug and give her a concerning look. "I know you both are going to kill it today." She looked at Ryan. "You too."

"Bye mom." Ryan said as he and the others walked out of the house.

Lorelai sighed. She could have done a better job of covering for Luke. She had a feeling that Jess was on to her. She hated keeping the secret from Jess.

* * *

As Rory and Jess approached the bus, Jess stopped. Rory turned around. "What are you doing?"

"I forgot something at home."

"What?"

"My um book." He stuttered.

"We don't need a book today. We are just taking a final." Rory told him.

"I need it." Jess said as he started to walk backwards.

"You are going to miss the bus." Rory called out to him.

"I'll get your mom to bring me." He continued to walk backwards.

"She has probably already left for the Inn." Rory was confused by his behavior.

"Oh yeah." That's what he was hoping for. "I'll catch the next one. I won't be too late. No worries." This time he didn't wait for her to speak, before he headed back towards the house.

Rory shook her head. She hoped that he didn't miss his final exam.

* * *

Back at the house, Jess was relieved to see that Lorelai had already left for work. He knew that he shouldn't worry about it, but he had a bad feeling about what his uncle was actually up to. He could tell Lorelai had been lying to him, and he wanted to know why.

He walked into the house and snooped in the entryway table. He wasn't even sure what he was looking for. He sighed. "What the hell are you looking for, Jess." He said to himself. He walked into the kitchen and then into the newly created master bedroom. He knew that he shouldn't be in there, but he had to know what was going on.

He looked through papers on their nightstands and didn't see anything. Maybe there was nothing for him to worry about. Maybe Lorelai wasn't lying to him. He needed to hurry up. Maybe he would still be able to catch the first bus. As he was leaving, he bumped into the table next to the door. Everything fell onto the floor. Jess sighed and picked up the mess. He noticed a piece of paper under the table. He shook his head as he read the information on the paper. "Whoa." He couldn't believe it. He also couldn't believe no one had told him. He was mad, and he was going to get to the bottom of it.

Which meant he wasn't going to make it to Chilton to take his test.

* * *

Ryan walked into school happier than he had been all year. "What's with your face?" Lane asked as she closed her locker door for the last time in the school year.

"It's the last day of school." He said joyously. "We have two whole months without having to come to this place. I never thought it would get here."

"It hasn't been that bad." Lane told him. "Besides, I would much rather be at school than at home with my mother all summer or even worse." She paused. "Bible camp."

"Oh." Ryan scrunched his face. "Thank God, my mom doesn't believe in all that."

"God?" Lane asked.

"Oh no. Not God. She believes in God. There wouldn't be coffee without a God." He paused. "She doesn't believe in making her kids go away to camp." Ryan smiled.

Lane knocked him in the shoulder.

"What was that for?"

"You don't have to go to summer camp."

"She had a bad experience one time." Ryan added. "Said she would never make her kids go to camp unless we begged her, and even then, she'd have to think about it."

"Your mom is so cool."

"Yours is too." Ryan said with a huge smile on his face.

"Thanks a lot."

"Wow. I can't win with you today."

"I'm sorry. It's not you. It's Bible Camp." She said sadly.

"Sorry." Lane sighed. "I've got to get to class. Good luck on your test."

"You too." He walked to his locker and took out his last book of the year. He was so excited to be done with school for the summer.

"Gilmore."

He turned around to see Coach heading towards him. "Yes sir." He closed his locker.

"My office." He pointed.

Ryan was surprised. He hadn't done anything wrong, that he could think of. He followed Coach into his office. He was surprised to see Daniel already in the office. The two boys had been getting along since the incident. They weren't best friends, but they were always cordial. They hadn't fought.

"Take a seat, Gilmore."

Ryan did as he was told. He looked at Daniel. Daniel shrugged to answer the nonverbal question of what was going on.

"I bet you two are wondering why I asked you here."

Both boys nodded.

Coach handed them both a pamphlet.

Ryan read it. "Basketball camp."

Coach nodded. "Yep. I want you two to go to this four-week intensive basketball camp in California. It begins in July." He told them. "The school is paying for two of my guys to attend, and I have picked the two of you. Take the pamphlet home to your parents, along with these forms to get signed."

"Um coach." Ryan shook his head. "My family isn't really into camp."

"This camp is an important camp, and it will change your life. Your family needs to get over it and sign you up. I'm not taking no for an answer." Coach told them.

The bell rang.

"Alright. Get to class."

Ryan looked down at the pamphlet. He wasn't sure that he wanted to spend four-weeks of his summer at basketball camp, away from his family.

"What do you think?" Daniel asked.

Ryan shrugged. "I don't know. What about you?"

"I think we have to do it."

Ryan sighed. Daniel was probably right.

"It won't be too bad. I know I'm not your favorite person, but at least we will be together."

"Yeah." Ryan sighed again. "I got to get to class." Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. He wasn't sure his mom would even say yes, especially since it was in California for four whole weeks.

* * *

"So he is in New York?" Sookie asked as she stirred the green beans. "These are going to be great. World class green beans. Bite."

"No thanks. I'll take your word for it." Lorelai was not in the mood for vegetables.

"So New York?"

"Yes." Lorelai told her. "He is New York."

"And you still haven't told him that you don't want to have anymore kids."

Lorelai shook her head. "I don't know how to tell him. I think it is going to be a deal breaker for him."

"You don't know that." Sookie offered as she put the green bean spoon down. "You need to talk to him about it."

"Ah." Lorelai sighed. "I love him."

"And he loves you." Sookie reminded her. "It's better to talk to him about it now."

"I know." Lorelai sighed. "But I am so afraid of losing him." She rested against the counter. "What we have is so great. He is such a good father, and we make a pretty nice family."

"A very attractive family." Sookie smiled. "You would make very attractive babies."

"Not helping." She mumbled.

"Sorry. But it is the truth." Sookie explained. "You and Luke are meant to be together. It's written all over your face and his face. You have to trust that." She hoped she was getting through to her friend.

"You are right."

This was not the first time they had this discussion, and it most likely wouldn't be the last. Lorelai knew that she had to talk to Luke.

"Maybe after you two talk this no baby thing through, you will finally be able to accept his proposal."

"Sookie." Lorelai rolled her eyes.

"That man wants to marry you, Lorelai Gilmore, and I know that you want to marry that man. And I know that you won't marry because of the baby thing."

"That's not it."

"It is definitely it." Sookie pointed. "And you know it. You two would already be married."

"We need time."

Sookie shook her head. "You don't need more time. When you know. You know."

Lorelai knew that her friend was right, but she was afraid. Besides her kids, Luke was the best thing that ever happened to her. She didn't want to lose him.

"You really should try these green beans." Sookie offered again. Lorelai shook her head. Luke was the only person who could get her to eat vegetables. She wanted to keep it that way.

* * *

"Rory." Paris said as she cornered her in the hallway. "Where's Jess?"

Rory shrugged. "How am I supposed to know, Paris?"

"He's your pseudo-brother." Paris rattled off. "Don't the two of you ride together from that God forsaken town."

"He didn't get on the bus this morning, but he should be here. He was going to get the next one."

"He didn't. He missed our test." Paris was shocked. "I can't believe he would do this. We worked so hard studying. It was probably because he was afraid that I was going to do better than him."

"I'm sure that is it." Rory was confused. Jess wouldn't have missed a test on purpose. Would he?

* * *

Luke sat patiently in a small bedroom with two beds. He wasn't really sure how they were able to get two beds in such a tiny room. He was nervous. He hadn't seen his sister in a while, and this was the last place he wanted to see her. But it wasn't unexpected. Luke knew she was bound to end up in rehab or even worse prison.

"Hi big brother." Liz said as she entered the room. "I was in group." She was surprised and happy to see her brother. "They told me someone was here. I never thought that it would be you."

Luke stood up. He was also surprised. She was thinner than he remembered, but she didn't look bad. She looked better than he remembered. "Yeah. I didn't think I would be here either."

Liz walked closer to him, giving him an awkward hug. "It's been a long time."

"Why didn't you call me?" Luke asked her as she sat in the chair.

Liz shrugged. "I didn't want to disappoint you yet again." She said sadly.

"What happened? How did you end up here?"

"It was here or jail." She told him.

Luke shook his head. "What did you do?"

"What do you think?" Liz gave him a look.

He knew. He didn't have to ask her, and she didn't have to tell him. Luke didn't say anything.

"This is my last chance. I don't plan on ruining it this time." She told him honestly. "I promise big brother. I'm getting clean. Thirty days so far."

"That's good." He didn't know if he believed her. She had never been able to stay clean before.

"I've got ninety more days here, and then they have people that are going to help me get an apartment and a job. I've started making jewelry in this place. I'm pretty good at it. All of the others think I have a real talent."

"Uh huh." He had heard it all before.

"I promise Luke. This time is different."

"How?"

"I don't have a choice this time. One more screw up, and I'll be sent to jail. I don't want that to happen." She said nervously. "I won't make it in a place like that."

"It's jail." Luke said plainly.

"Exactly." Liz nodded. "I've made a lot of progress. I'm actually glad that you are here. I was going to call you soon. Make amends." She paused. "That's part of the program. Making amends."

Luke nodded nervously. He didn't know what to say. This was all a lot for him to take in.

"There is also something I want to talk to you about."

"Jess." Luke realized she hadn't even asked about him yet.

"How is my boy?" She smiled at the thought of her son. "I bet he is as handsome as ever."

"He is doing well." Luke informed her. "He is going to a private school in Hartford, and he is at the top of his class."

"Wow." She smiled happily. "I always knew he could do it, if he just applied himself. He is a very smart boy. He must get that from you and his grandfather."

"You are smart too, Liz."

"I have a hell of a way of showing it, right." She sighed. "There really is something else that we should talk about."

"What else could there be besides Jess?" Luke wondered.

"It has to do with Jess."

"Liz, even after leaving this place, you will not be in any shape to take him on your own." Luke interrupted her. "I also wanted to talk to you about something."

"I know that. But Jimmy."

"No." Luke said sharply. "No." At the sound of that name, Luke cringed.

"I contacted him as part of the program." Liz explained. "He has really changed Luke."

"Yeah right."

"He has a family now. A wife. A daughter. And he lives in Hartford."

"No." Luke said again.

"He wants to see Jess."

"No." Luke said angrily. "Hell no. He doesn't get to waltz back into his life just because he has made some changes, and neither will you." Luke sighed heavily. "Jess is doing great, and he doesn't need a setback."

"It won't be a setback. Jimmy is Jess' father."

"Some father he is." Luke shot back. "He's never even met Jess."

"He saw him when he was a baby."

"Exactly. Jess was a baby." Luke shook his head. "I'm his guardian. I'm not going to let it happen."

"Please. Luke. It will be good for Jess."

"You don't know what is good for Jess. You never have." Luke was furious. "I met someone. She has three kids, and they all love Jess. He loves them. We are a family." He sighed. "I came here today to ask you to sign over all of your rights. I want to adopt Jess."

Liz gave him a surprised look. "He's my son." She knew she hadn't been there for him like a mother should be, but she still loved her son. He was still her kid.

"He hasn't been your son in a very long time."

"I love him, and Jimmy wants to get to know him." Liz pleaded. "You can't keep him away from his family."

"After all of this time. I don't understand why Jimmy wants anything to do with Jess. It doesn't make sense."

"He wants to get to know his son." Liz argued. "It is an understandable request."

Luke was furious. He didn't want to lose Jess, but somehow, he felt like that was exactly what was going to happen, especially if he let him meet Jimmy.

He was also afraid of Jess getting hurt by Jimmy.

* * *

Lorelai was at the front desk at the Inn when the phone rang. "Independence Inn, Lorelai speaking." She waited for a response. "Yes. This is she. Oh yes. You wouldn't be able to get him. He is out of town. What?" She shook her head, a little confused by the question. "He got on the bus with my daughter, Rory. You already checked with her? She doesn't know where he is." She began to panic. "Yes. I understand he was supposed to take a test. I am sure this is a big misunderstanding. Yes. Thank you for calling." She hung up the phone in a panic.

"Damn it, Jess." She said to herself. "What are you up to?"

* * *

"I wish that you would listen to me." Liz said to Luke once more. They had been sitting in silence for over thirty minutes.

"You've never listened to me, Liz." Luke told her.

"I promise this time is different."

"You've promised that before." He snapped at her. "I don't want your promises to hurt Jess. He is the most important thing here. I don't think you have ever thought that."

"I know." Liz began to cry. "I regret the way I have behaved over the years. I know you don't think that, and you may never think that. I feel awful for the way I have treated Jess and for the way I have treated you. I'm sorry. I can't fix the damage that I caused, but I can try to do better….To be better…You have to let me." Liz pleaded.

Before Luke could respond, his cellphone rang.

Liz was surprised to see her brother had a cellphone.

"Hello." Luke answered.

"Jess is missing." Lorelai told him on the other end of the phone.

"What?" Luke thought he had heard her incorrectly.

"He didn't go to school this morning. I have a feeling that he thought I was lying to him about where you were going."

"I'm coming home right now. Talk to Ryan. I'm sure he knows where he is. Those two don't do anything without talking to each other first." Luke knew that.

"I am so sorry, Luke."

"It's okay. He'll be fine. I love you."

"I love you too."

Luke hung up the phone.

"Jess is missing." Liz overheard the conversation.

"I've got to go."

"Luke. Wait. Please give me a chance. Give Jimmy a chance." Liz begged him. "I'm his mother. Jimmy is his father. You can't keep him from us."

"Damn it, Liz. All you ever think about is yourself. I've actually got to find the kid first and make sure he is okay." Luke was fuming. "You can see Jess anytime you want with my supervision, but Jimmy isn't getting anywhere near him. He is not his father. Not now. Not ever. I can promise you that."

"Jess." Liz whispered.

Luke turned around to see his nephew standing behind him, shocked by everything he had heard.

* * *

 **I hope you guys enjoyed! Let me know what you thought!**


	89. Finding Jess

**I am so sorry for the long hiatus! I hope someone out there is still interested in reading this story!**

 **Enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **Chapter 2.16: Finding Jess**

"What the hell are you doing here?" Luke raised his voice at the sight of his nephew.

Jess ignored his uncle's question and turned his attention towards his mother. "You're in rehab?" He said plainly, without any emotions.

"Hey baby boy. You look so handsome." Liz moved closer to her son, but he moved backwards and shook his head.

Liz sighed. She expected as much. "It's court ordered." She informed him about the reason why she was in rehab, as if that were going to make it any better.

"Hey." Luke intervened and pointed at Jess. "What are you doing here?" He asked again.

"What are you doing here?" Jess shot back. "Why didn't you tell me?" He yelled back at him.

"You didn't need to know. Not yet." Luke reasoned.

"I thought we were supposed to be honest with each other." Jess told him. "Obviously that was a lie."

"I was going to tell you, but I wanted to see her first." Luke explained. "But I don't have to explain that to you. You are supposed to be at school taking a test."

Jess shrugged. "Didn't feel like it."

"I'm not impressed with this attitude Jess." Luke found Jess's new attitude to be unacceptable.

"Guys." Liz interjected. "Please don't fight. I don't want my two guys fighting."

"I'm not your guy." Jess snapped and then thought for a moment. He looked at his uncle and then back at his mom. "Is it true? Jimmy wants to see me?" Jess knew very little about his dad. No more than the few details his mom had blurted out during one of her drunken benders.

"Yes."

"No."

Both Liz and Luke said in unison.

"You don't need to worry about Jimmy. The only thing that you need to worry about is getting back home and trying to make up your test." Luke told him angrily.

"He wants to see you Jess. He is changed. I promise." Liz pleaded with them passionately.

"People don't change." Luke responded.

"That's funny. You tell people all the time that I have changed." Jess turned it around on his uncle.

"Jess. It is your decision." Liz told him.

"It is not your decision." Luke told him. "It is my decision, and I say no."

Jess shook his head. "I'm not listening to this." Jess backed out of the room and ran down the hall.

"JESS." Luke yelled. "Get back here." He walked into the hallway but Jess was already gone. "You did this." He pointed at Liz. "You are always causing trouble in his life."

"Luke."

"No. You haven't changed. I've got to go. I've got to find my kid." Luke walked out of the room.

"He's my kid." Liz stated as a tear fell from her eye. This was not how she wanted to see Luke or Jess again.

* * *

Lorelai walked quickly through the streets of Stars Hollow. She was a woman on a mission. As she approached the high school, she stopped when she saw Ryan walking out of the building.

"Mom." He stopped when he spotted her. "What are you doing here?" He figured it had to do with the camp. Coach must have called her.

"Where's Jess?" Lorelai asked.

"Chilton." Ryan said plainly.

"Don't lie to me." Lorelai said sternly. "I need to know where Jess is."

Ryan shrugged. "I'm not lying." He said honestly. "I thought Jess got on the bus with Rory."

"You don't know where he is?" Lorelai could tell that her son was being honest with her.

"No. I don't know where he is." Ryan told her again. "Are you okay?"

"Jess didn't go to school today." Lorelai told him. "I was really hoping that you knew where he was." She really thought that Ryan would know where Jess was.

Ryan shook his head. "I promise you. I don't know where he is. I would tell you if I did."

"Really?"

"You look really worried." Ryan noted. "Should I be worried?"

Lorelai sighed. "I don't know."

Before she could say anything else, her phone rang. "Luke. Ryan doesn't know where he is."

"He's in New York." Luke informed her.

"New York?" Lorelai repeated and shook her head. "How did he get to New York?"

Ryan's eyes' grew large. Jess hadn't told him his plans for a quick trip to New York.

"I've lost him." Luke told her without answering her question. "I don't even know where to look."

"How did you lose him?"

"He came to Liz's."

"He must have gotten the address from our bedroom." Lorelai realized.

"That's what I'm thinking."

"Luke, I am so sorry." Lorelai sighed. She couldn't help feel like this was all her fault.

"It's not your fault, Lorelai."

"Why did he run?"

"He was mad at me. He was mad at Liz. He is back at being mad at the world." Luke told her.

"He should try central park." Ryan told his mom.

"What?" Lorelai asked. How would he know that?

"We've talked about it before. Whenever his mom disappointed him, he would find a bench in central park and read for hours." Ryan told her, remembering a story Jess had told him.

"Central park, Luke." Lorelai told him.

"Central Park?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Thanks, Lorelai." Luke told her.

"Love you, Luke."

"Love you too." He hung up the phone. He had to find Jess.

"Thanks, kid." Lorelai said as she hung up the phone.

"I don't know why he would go to New York."

"I do."

Ryan gave her a look.

"His mom."

Ryan nodded. That made sense.

"We should get home. This has not been my favorite day." Lorelai told him.

Ryan sighed. "Can I talk to you about something?"

Lorelai turned to him. "Yes." She said with a raised eyebrow.

He pointed to a bench.

"Uh oh." Lorelai stopped. "This seems serious. I can't take much more today. Remember. I lost one of my kids."

"You didn't lose a kid." Ryan said as they made it to the bench and sat down.

"Two kids were supposed to get on the bus. Only one kid did. It was my responsibility to make sure they both got on the bus. My fault that only one kid got on the bus." Lorelai rattled on. "Therefore, I lost a kid."

"Well. You are always saying that we are responsible for our own actions."

Lorelai shook her head. "That's true." She looked at Ryan. "So why do you have me sitting on this bench? What's going on?"

He reached in his backpack. "Here."

"What's this?" She read it. "Basketball camp."

"Yep."

"In California." She said as she continued to read. "For four weeks!" She exclaimed. "I don't think so."

"Mom."

"No way." She shook her head. "That is way too long. Besides. Camp sucks."

"Coach didn't really give us an option to say no."

"I can always say no." Lorelai told him as she titled her head. She thought for a moment. "Do you really want to go?"

Ryan thought. "I'm not sure."

"We aren't camp people."

"No. But I am a basketball person. It might help me get better."

Lorelai nodded. "I will talk to Luke about it to make sure he is on board, but if it is something that you want to do, then you can go."

"Really?"

Lorelai nodded. "Yes." She paused. "If it is okay with Luke."

Ryan was surprisingly happy about her answer. He didn't realize how much he wanted to go.

"Also, your grades have to be good. If you need summer school, then you can't go."

"I got it." He smiled. "Thanks mom."

"You have to promise to call me like three times a day." She put her arm around him. "I'm going to miss you so much. You are my baby."

"Ruby is your baby."

"Ruby is my baby, baby, baby. You are my first baby."

"What about Rory?"

"She is my baby, baby, but only by a few minutes."

Ryan shook his head. "Sometimes your logic is crazy."

"I'm okay with it." She laughed. "Now let's go get the baby, baby, baby, and get home."

"Alright." Ryan laughed at his mom. He was really going to miss her for the four weeks he would be gone during the summer.

* * *

Rory hopped off of the bus and into Dean's arms. "Hey." She said in-between kisses. "I didn't know you were going to be here."

"Of course." He kissed her again. "I want to spend every second I can with you, until I have to go to Chicago for the summer."

"I'm really going to miss you Dean." She held onto his hand. "I can't believe we have to be a part all summer."

"Well we don't have to be apart all summer." He said.

She gave him a look. "I thought you were going to Chicago."

"I am. But you can come with us for a week."

"What?"

"My parents suggested it. They thought you might like a trip to Chicago. If it is okay with your mom."

Rory smiled. "I've never been to Chicago."

"Please. Rory. Say yes."

Rory nodded. "I have to ask my mom and Luke, and I really want to be here for Father's Day. So it would have to be after Father's Day."

"Oh yeah. That's right." Dean remembered. "You could come in July."

"I'm so excited." She kissed him. "I hope my parents say yes." She kissed him again.

"Me too."

* * *

"Wow." Luke said as he finally approached the bench Jess was sitting on. He wasn't reading. Just staring into space. "I had no idea how many benches were in this place."

Jess looked up at him but didn't say anything.

"We need to talk." Luke sat down next to Jess.

Jess still didn't say anything.

"You are supposed to be in Stars Hollow."

Jess shrugged.

"Why did you come here?" Luke asked.

"Why did you?"

"I asked first." Luke said sternly.

"You should have told me about my mom." Jess said plainly. Still not looking at Luke or answering his question.

"I didn't want to worry you or even get your hopes up that she was better. That this time was going to be different. When it comes to your mom, she is so unpredictable. You know that." Luke tried to defend himself.

Jess still avoided eye contact. "I deserved to know."

"Maybe so." Luke shrugged. "But I'm your guardian. I get to make the decisions."

Jess shook his head. "That's funny. I thought you were going to start talking to me about this stuff. We are supposed to keep each other in the loop." Jess said angrily.

"Yes." Luke paused. "This was different." He didn't know how else to explain it.

Jess rolled his eyes. That explanation sucked. "So." He paused. "If I would have found out about my mom – You wouldn't have wanted me to tell you about it."

"That's different." Luke defended.

"It's not different." Jess yelled, finally looking at Luke. "It just proves that this open and honest thing is one sided – I have to tell you everything but you aren't going to show me the same respect." Jess was furious.

"I'm trying to protect you."

"I don't need to be protected." Jess yelled again.

"Yes you do." Luke yelled back. "You need to be protected from my sister."

Jess was quiet for a moment. "Were you going to tell me about Jimmy? He wants to see me."

"No." Luke admitted.

"Yet another thing you were going to keep from me." Jess felt defeated.

"Jimmy is no good." Luke wished that his nephew could understand that.

"She said that he has changed." Jess remembered.

"People don't change." Luke said.

"Yet you tell people that I have changed – you harp on it."

"That's different." Luke argued.

"You keep saying that, but it isn't. You can't have it both ways."

"You have changed." He sighed. "Maybe Jimmy has too." Luke admitted. "But I am not willing to risk that. I'm not going to put you through that."

"He is my dad."

Luke hated hearing that. Jimmy was not a father, at least not the man that Luke knew. "He is your sperm donor."

Jess rolled his eyes. "I get no say in this."

"I'm sorry Jess." Luke looked at his nephew. "But." He paused. "I can't let you see him."

"Fine." Jess sighed. "I see how this is going to be."

"I'm not changing my mind on this." Luke maintained his stance.

"Fine." Jess grunted. "Can I see my mom before we leave?" He asked.

"We can see her together." Luke told him.

"Fine."

"Are you only going to say fine here on out?" Luke asked.

"How did you find out she was in rehab?" Jess asked him.

"Rachel found her." Luke told him. He didn't want to tell him everything. He didn't think that Jess was in any mood to hear about Luke's adoption plans.

"Why?" Jess was curious.

"Doesn't matter."

Jess rolled his eyes again. "It matters to me. There has to be a reason why you wanted to find her."

"I wanted to make sure that she was still alive. We hadn't heard from her in so long. I was worried about her." That was not a lie. He really did want to make sure that she was okay.

"Right."

"Jess."

Jess stood up. "Can we go?"

"Jess."

"Please."

Luke stood up. "Fine. Let's go."

Luke felt like they were right where they started. That always happened when Liz was involved. It would be best if Liz was out of the picture, but it didn't look like that was going to happen.

* * *

Luke was standing outside of Liz's room talking to Lorelai on the phone. "He is in with Liz."

"I'm surprised you left his side." Lorelai said.

"Yeah." Luke sighed. "I wanted to hear your voice."

"Are you headed home soon?"

"Yes. As soon as he finishes talking with Liz." Luke was ready to see her face. It had been an even longer day than he had originally expected. "He is never leaving the house again."

"I'm in complete agreement. I should have made sure that he got on that bus."

"We shouldn't have to do that. Jess is old enough to know better." Luke said with a disappointed tone. "Don't blame yourself for this." He reminded her.

"Just come home." Lorelai was ready for Luke and Jess to be home where they belong.

"I'll see you soon." He hung up the phone and looked into Liz's room. She was sitting on the bed and Jess was standing him. Neither one of them were saying too much. He decided to give them a few more minutes before entering the room.

"Jess." Liz touched his shirt. "It is so good to see you. I'm glad you came back. I was worried that I would never see you again."

"That's your fault." Jess countered.

"I know." Liz nodded. "I've made a lot of mistakes, but I am going to make it up to you. I promise."

"I don't need you too." Jess told her, not making eye contact.

"Jess." Liz sighed. "Look at me."

Jess thought for a moment, and then looked up at his mother. "I'm sorry. I'll never be able to say that enough." Liz pleaded with him. "I'm getting better and maybe one day we can spend some time together. Just the two of us."

Jess didn't say anything.

"And your dad." Liz started. "He wants to see you too."

Jess shook his head. He didn't know what to say. He didn't realize his day was going to turn out this way when he had woken up.

"I hadn't talked to him in so long. I didn't think that he would want to talk to me. But I needed to talk to him for closure. It is part of the process." Liz rambled. "It was good to talk to him though. I was messed up before I met your father, but when he left…" she sighed. "That didn't help me. I missed him. I thought we were going to be a family."

"But he left." Jess whispered.

Liz nodded. "Not because of you." Liz told him. "Never because of you. Nothing that the two of us ever did was because of you."

"You could have stayed." Jess said. "Because of me. You both could have stayed." He sighed heavily.

Luke had been listening to the conversation and thought it was a good time for him to intervene. "Jess." He said as he stepped into the doorway. He titled his head backwards. "It is time to go."

"Big brother." Liz said.

Luke shook his head. "I'm glad you are doing better Liz. Maybe we can talk again soon."

Liz nodded. "I'd like that." She wasn't completely hopeful but she would take what she could get. She touched Jess' arm. He didn't flinch like before. "I love you, son."

"See ya." Jess mumbled as he followed his uncle out of the room.

* * *

Lorelai and Rory were cleaning off the kitchen table. Lorelai had picked up several bags of takeout, specifically takeout Luke was not a fan of. He had called her again to let her know they were on their way home, and would stop to eat before reaching Stars Hollow.

Ryan and Ruby were in the living room playing dolls. There was something about Ruby's smile that Ryan couldn't resist.

"So mom." Rory had waited until after dinner to ask her about the vacation with Dean.

"Yeah sweetie." Lorelai said as she put a dish away.

"You know Dean is going out of town this summer to visit his grandparents."

"Oh I know. I know you are going to miss him." She said sympathetically.

"I am." Rory agreed. "But."

"But?" Lorelai repeated. "But what?"

"Dean asked me to visit him in Chicago at the end of his trip." Rory said quickly and in a high-pitched tone that Lorelai could know how happy she was about the chance to go.

Lorelai stopped what she was doing. "Chicago?"

Rory nodded.

"By yourself?"

"I would meet Dean there."

"Without me or Luke?" Lorelai continued to ask questions.

"Yes."

"Rory." She shook her head. "I don't know."

"You are letting Ryan go to California."

"Oh Rory. Don't do that." Lorelai warned. "You know I hate when your brother does that to me."

"Mom. Please. You can talk to Dean's parents and his grandparents." Rory pleaded. "I promise I'll be good."

"Rory. I know that you will be good. That's not the problem. How long would you be gone?"

"One week."

"That's so long."

"Ryan's going to be gone for four weeks."

"Rory." Lorelai pointed again.

"Sorry." Rory sighed. "Please."

Lorelai thought about it for a moment. "I will talk to Luke. If says that it is okay, then you can go. Just like Ryan."

Rory jumped up and down and gave her mom a hug. "Thanks, mom. You are the best."

"I didn't say yes."

"But you will. I've got to go call Dean." She ran out of the kitchen.

Lorelai smiled. She figured Luke would say yes.

"Mommy." Ruby called for Lorelai.

"Yes sweetie." Lorelai walked into the living room where Ryan was beginning to walk upstairs. "What's wrong?"

"He won't play with me."

"I've already played tea party and dolls. I'm ready to enjoy my first official night without school the next morning." Ryan told her. "Besides you're just dancing."

"It's the special dance at the dance recital."

"You can show me." Lorelai offered.

"No I can't." Ruby told her quickly. "I can't show you. It is the special dance."

"But you can show Ryan."

"Yes. But not you or Luke." Ruby told her. She sighed. "I'm going to go practice in my room."

"Alright." Lorelai told her.

"Great." Ryan rushed upstairs before anyone could stop him. He was ready for some time by himself.

Lorelai sat on the couch and leaned her head against the back of the couch. "And then there was one." She whispered. Before she could get to comfortable, she heard Luke's truck pull into the driveway. She was so happy that they were home. She sat up and waited for the two of them to enter.

She could tell that Luke walked into the house first. "Go." She heard him whisper to Jess.

"Jess." Lorelai stood up as the boy walked into the room. He looked like the brooding Jess she had first met, avoiding eye contact with her. "Thank God." She hugged him tight. She didn't even care that the hug was not reciprocated. She pulled away from him and shook her head. "What the hell were you thinking?" She said sternly.

The harshness in her tone took Jess by surprised.

Luke gave her a look and a slight shrug. He and Jess had barely spoken on the ride home. It had not been a fun trip, at all.

Jess didn't say anything.

"Hey." She made him look at her. "I'm waiting for an answer."

Jess still didn't say anything.

"You were supposed to get on the bus. You didn't get on the bus. Why the hell didn't you get on the bus?" Lorelai maintained her stern tone.

Jess shrugged. "What does it matter?" He snapped. "You aren't my mom."

"Jess." Luke started to intervene, but Lorelai held up her hand.

"That's right." Lorelai confirmed. "I'm not your mom, but for almost a year I have become your parent. You are my kid whether you like it or not. That comes with worry. I was worried sick about you." Lorelai informed him.

Jess didn't say anything.

"I love you, Jess." Lorelai told him. It was the first time she had ever said the words to him, but it felt right.

Jess was surprised. Luke was also pleasantly surprised. He was happy to hear it, and he hoped that Jess was too.

"I don't want anything to happen to you." She touched his arm. To her surprise, he didn't pull away. "Why did you go to New York?" She asked again, still maintaining her stern tone.

"I found out that you were going to see my mom." Jess admitted to the two adults. "After I realized both of you lied to me, I couldn't go to school."

Luke shook his head. "I was going to tell you."

"For some reason –" He paused. "I doubt it."

"Listen. I understand you felt lied to, and you were mad." Lorelai started. "But that doesn't give you the right to go to New York, skip school, and miss your final."

Jess sighed. "I can make it up."

"No." Luke shook his head.

"You can't." Lorelai finished his thought.

Jess looked surprised.

"Chilton doesn't give make up tests. It's their policy." Lorelai explained.

"It was a final exam. I figured they would let it slide."

"It's Chilton. They don't let things slide." Luke told him. "You screwed up. Big time."

Jess shrugged. He really thought that he would be able to make up the test.

"Luckily for you I talked to Headmaster Charleston." Lorelai told him. "You won't fail the class if you take summer school."

"What? No way." Jess argued. "I aced the entire year. I don't need summer school."

"You missed a test." Luke reminded him.

"You don't have a choice this time, kid." Lorelai knew he wouldn't be happy about it, but there was nothing else they could do about it. "You have to go or else you are going to fail."

"I can't believe you would risk all the hard work that you put in this year." Luke was mad. "You could have blown it. You still can." Luke explained. "You have to do well in summer school to even get a B in the class." Luke told him. Lorelai had explained everything over the phone. "You were at the top of your class. You could have ruined it."

"Whatever." Jess blurted out. He knew it wasn't the right thing to say, but he was mad. He didn't care what they had to say, and now he had ruined his whole summer.

"Whatever?" Luke raised his voice.

"Jess. You've got to take this seriously. This is a big deal."

"I know. Okay. I know."

"The only thing that you are doing this summer is summer school, studying, and working at the diner. That's it."

"What? You can't ground me for the entire summer." Jess realized what his uncle was implying.

"Yes I can." Luke countered.

"Luke." Lorelai touched his arm. She was mad but grounding Jess for the entire summer seemed a bit extreme.

"No. Lorelai. He needs to learn that actions have consequences."

"You are just doing this so that I won't have an opportunity to meet Jimmy."

"Jimmy is no good."

Jess rolled his eyes. "You can't control everything in my life."

"Yes I can. I know what is best for you."

"Yeah. Everyone always knows what is best for me." Jess turned to walk upstairs.

"Hey. We aren't done here."

"Luke." Lorelai said calmly. "I think we all need some time to calm down. Get some rest."

"Fine. Go to your room." Luke ordered. "And stay there."

"Whatever." He said again as he stomped upstairs to his room.

Luke shook his head. "Unbelievable."

"Luke."

"I need a shower." Luke said as he walked out of the room.

Lorelai sighed. That had not gone well at all. Hopefully a good nights rest would help everyone.

* * *

 **Let me know what you thought!**


	90. Luke's Double Standard

**Thank you all so much for the reviews! I am excited to know that people are still reading this story. This is a shorter chapter, but I wanted to get something posted to start off the week.**

 **I hope you all enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **2.17 Luke's Double Standard**

Lorelai sat in bed thinking about the events of the previous day. She glanced over at Luke's side of the bed. He was stirring. She could tell that he hadn't slept either. "Couldn't sleep?" She asked as she rubbed his back. He slowly turned over to face her.

"No." He said with a sigh. "Too frustrated." He sat up in the bed next to Lorelai. "I can't believe he ran off to New York."

"Yeah." She sighed. "My heart wouldn't stop beating at a way too rapid pace until you found him." Lorelai admitted.

"I'm sorry he put you through that." He reached for her hand.

"Partly my fault."

"How do you figure that?" Luke looked at her.

Lorelai looked back at him. "I wasn't a very good liar." She laughed. "Shockingly. All those times I lied to my parents did not pay off for me when put up against a 16-year-old like Jess." She smiled.

Luke didn't smile. He was still too mad at Jess. "I think Jess is just a good investigator."

"Not a horrible career…if you find a job like Olivia Benson."

Luke had no idea who she was talking about.

"Oh Luke. We really need to work on your TV watching skills."

Luke shook his head. "I don't know how you can joke. I can't even think about joking. All I can think about is Jess…" He paused. "Liz." He paused again. "Jimmy." He said with disdain.

"Oh yes. Jimmy. His dad."

Luke had explained everything to her the night before.

"No. That man is not his dad." Luke quickly corrected her.

"Well." Lorelai made a face. She knew she was headed down a rocky road. Luke had made it pretty clear how he felt about Jimmy.

"He isn't." He responded quickly, beginning to become frustrated with her.

"You are right." Lorelai started. "He isn't a dad. He hasn't been there for him, his whole life. But."

"But."

"If he wants to try to know Jess then maybe we should let him."

"No." Luke was not budging. "Out of the question."

"Luke." Lorelai tilted her head and closed her eyes and then looked at Luke.

"No. Lorelai. Don't Luke me." He let go of her hand. "You don't know Jimmy. I do. I've got to protect Jess." He was adamant about it.

"I know that you want to protect Jess." Lorelai understood that better than anyone. "I love that about you. But Jess is sixteen. Maybe we should give him the option. We have to start trusting him at some point."

"I trust him. I don't trust Jimmy."

"Luke." Lorelai shook her head. He was being unreasonable, which was out of character for him. He was usually reasonable. "What are you afraid is going to happen?"

"I don't want to talk about this anymore." He stood up from the bed.

"Luke. Maybe you should tell Jess that you want to adopt him. He deserves to know."

"No not now. He'll think it is because I want to keep him from Jimmy."

"But Luke that's not the truth. Jess is a smart kid. You need to talk to him…about the adoption…about Jimmy…about Liz."

"I'm not going to change my mind, and I don't want to argue with you about it."

Lorelai nodded. "Fine. We won't argue about it."

"Fine."

"We will just act like five year olds." Lorelai added.

"Lorelai." Luke said with an exaggerated sigh.

"It's really fine." She repeated. "I need to talk to you about something else."

"Okay. I'm listening." He was happy to talk about anything else. There were very little times in their relationship that they didn't mesh, but unfortunately the Jimmy situation was one of those times.

"Two somethings actually." She smiled, trying to lighten the mood. "Ryan's coach wants him to go to basketball camp in California for four weeks this summer."

"Wow." Luke said with a smile on his face. "That a big deal. I told you that kid is going to be a famous basketball player one day."

"I think he could be famous without going to California." Lorelai admitted.

"You don't want him to go." Luke could tell.

"Not really, but I think that it could be could for him." She sighed. "I think camp is awful. At least it was for me. And I will miss him like crazy, but he seems like he wants to go. He really loves basketball, and I'd hate to stop him from getting better at throwing the ball in the hoop."

"You almost got it." Luke smiled. "I think he should go too."

"Something we can agree on."

"We will make sure he calls us every day." Luke told her. He wanted to reassure her that everything would be okay.

"Twice a day. I'm really going to miss my baby, but he is going to be happy that we are letting him go."

"What was the second something?" Luke remembered.

"Well. Another one of our kids wants to fly the coop this summer."

"I definitely have to say no to Ruby joining the ballet in New York." He joked.

"I think we have a few more years before we have to let her go." Lorelai wanted to keep one of her babies a baby. "Rory wants to go spend a week with Dean and his family in Chicago."

"No." Luke said quickly. "You told her no, right?"

"I told her I would talk to you about it. I actually didn't think you would say no." Lorelai was a little confused.

"I don't think that is a good idea."

Lorelai gave him a frustrated look. "You just said that we could send Ryan to California for four weeks but you want me to tell Rory that she can't go to Chicago for one week."

"I want you to tell Rory that she can't go shack up with her boyfriend in Chicago for one week."

Lorelai shook her head. That was crazy talk. "Rory. You've met her right? She's not shacking up with anyone."

"Not while we can watch her and him." Luke was adamant again.

"His grandparents will be there. They have assured me that they would be in separate rooms."

"They can watch them all the time."

"We can't watch them all the time." Lorelai argued.

"I just think it is a bad idea. Rory will understand."

"I don't think that she will." Hell, Lorelai didn't even understand it.

"Lorelai." Luke said in a frustrated tone. "She's the same age that you were when you got pregnant. I think we have to be careful."

"Rory is not me." Lorelai stood up. "You know that. She is the most level-headed person on the whole planet. She isn't sleeping with Dean."

"A trip to Chicago might change that." Luke argued.

Lorelai couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had thought that Luke would say no to California before he said not to Chicago. "So you are saying no Rory but yes to Ryan?"

"Yes."

Lorelai shook her head. "That sounds like a double standard to me."

"Lorelai I know that you trust Rory. I trust Rory. But I don't trust Dean. We have to be careful. We have to protect her."

Lorelai sighed. She was getting nowhere with him today. "Fine." Lorelai gave up. "I don't agree with you on this. I don't agree with you about Jess and Jimmy. But I will respect your decision on both matters."

"Lorelai." Luke hated that they were upset with each other.

"No. It's okay. I'll tell Rory that she can't go." Lorelai still couldn't believe his response. She never would have expected it. "She's going to be really disappointed."

"It's for the best."

"Yeah."

"Lorelai." He sighed.

"Don't worry about it." She said as she walked into their bedroom.

This morning was not starting off any better than the day before had been.

* * *

Upstairs, in the boys' room, Ryan was sitting on the edge of his bed putting on his shoes. Jess walked into the room. He had been in the bathroom. Ryan had already tried to talk to him once that morning. Jess didn't seem to be in the mood for conversation.

"Hey." Ryan decided to try again.

Jess titled his head back in response.

"When did you decide to go to New York?" Ryan asked.

"I don't feel like talking about it."

"I thought we were best friends…brothers. We tell each other everything."

"We aren't brothers." Jess said plainly as he sat on his bed.

"Wow. I know you are pissed, but you don't have to take it out on me." Ryan declared.

"This isn't about you, Ryan. Not everything is." Jess snapped. "I told you I didn't want to talk about it."

"Fine." Ryan grabbed his basketball and headed towards the door. "Jess." He said softly.

Jess nodded in his direction.

"When you are ready to talk – I'll be here for you." Ryan said as he walked out of their shared bedroom.

Jess sighed. He probably shouldn't have been so angry with Ryan. He just felt mad at everyone. He wanted to go to the bridge to think, but he knew that wouldn't be allowed. He looked around the room. He was stuck in his room for the foreseeable future.

* * *

Lorelai walked into the kitchen. "Hey mom." Rory greeted her mom. She was sitting at the table drinking her coffee and eating a pop tart.

"Hey kid." Lorelai quietly sighed. She was not looking forward to the conversation she was about to have. Maybe she could put it off for a while.

"Sookie came to get Ruby."

"Oh right. She's taking them to the zoo today."

"Yeah. Ruby was thrilled. I told Sookie that you probably didn't get a whole lot of sleep last night. She said she would get the scoop from you later."

Lorelai nodded. "You are right. I didn't get a whole lot of sleep."

"Yeah. I didn't think that you would."

Lorelai poured herself a cup of coffee. "So." She paused, trying to think of the right words.

"Dean was pretty excited when I told him that I could visit him in Chicago."

"Well." Lorelai closed her eyes. "Rory." She said softly.

"Oh no." Rory could tell by her mom's demeanor that she wasn't going to like what her mom had to say.

"I talked to Luke, and he…" She stopped herself. "We think that it would be best if you didn't go to Chicago this summer."

"What?" Rory was surprised. "Why not?"

Lorelai really didn't know what to say. "We just don't think that you are old enough to go off to Chicago without us." She could barely get the words out.

"You were okay with it last night." Rory argued. "This has to do with Luke. He doesn't trust Dean."

"Rory." Lorelai felt horrible about it. "It was our decision."

Rory knew her mom was lying. "Yeah right. I can't believe you are lying to me right now. You wouldn't have changed your mind that easily. This has to do with Luke." Rory was angry.

"What's going on?" Ryan said as he walked into the kitchen.

"We can't go on our trips." Rory told him. "Luke doesn't think we are old enough to go off without parental supervision." She said dramatically.

"What? Mom?" Ryan whined.

"Well." Lorelai dropped her head. This couldn't have gone any worse. "Actually Rory." She didn't know what to say. "Ryan can go to basketball camp."

"Whoo." Ryan cheered.

"What?" Rory exclaimed. "How is that fair?"

Lorelai didn't know and decided not to say anything.

Luke walked into the kitchen as if on cue.

"You have such a double standard." Rory yelled at him.

"Rory. I know you don't think it is fair." Luke started.

"You are right. I don't. I am way more responsible than him." She pointed at Ryan.

"Hey. I take offense."

"I don't care." Rory growled. "This isn't fair."

"Life isn't fair." Ryan told her.

"Rory. I'm sorry." Lorelai told her.

Rory shook her head. "I'm going to Lane's house. Unless I'm not old enough to do that either." She glared at the two adults.

"You can go to Lane's." Lorelai told her.

She grabbed her things and walked out of the house without saying goodbye.

"Lorelai."

"I'm going to get a shower." Lorelai said as she walked past him back into their bedroom.

Ryan just stared at Luke. He was happy he was getting to go to his basketball camp.

"This day just keeps getting better and better." Luke shook his head. He felt defeated.

"That's a pretty big double standard." Ryan told him. Luke gave him a look. "I mean. Don't get me wrong. I'm really happy that I get to go to California to camp…" He paused. "But I thought if one of us was going to get to go that it wouldn't be me." He grabbed a water from the fridge. "See ya…" He patted Luke on the shoulder as he exited the kitchen.

Luke sighed. He just wanted to protect Rory. He thought that was what he was supposed to do.

* * *

At the diner, Luke stared at the phone on the wall. The diner wasn't too busy. He couldn't stop thinking about the day before and how he had handled things. Especially with Liz. He took the phone off of the wall and dialed a number. "Yes. Hello." He said when someone on the other end answered. "May I speak to Liz Danes?" He asked, although he wasn't sure that she was using that last name. Liz went through stages where she would change her last name just for the hell of it. "Right. Yes. I understand. But I need to talk to her. I will hold." Luke sighed.

"That's rude." Kirk, who was sitting at the counter said as he pointed at the phone. "You know you have customers."

"Kirk. Not now." Luke glared at the man.

"I need more coffee."

"You have plenty of coffee." Luke pointed out.

"But it isn't full. I like my coffee to always be full." Kirk explained.

"Kirk."

"Well the least you could do is give me a donut."

"Are you ordering a donut?"

"I think it should be a complimentary donut."

"I'm not giving you a complimentary donut." Luke told him. "I'm not giving you a complimentary anything. You are lucky I'm not giving you a complimentary kick in the rear."

"Luke."

"Kirk." Luke was about to say something else when he heard a voice on the phone.

"Hey. Liz." Luke turned his back from Kirk.

"Big brother." She was happy to hear from him. "I didn't think that I was going to hear from you any time soon."

"Yeah. I wanted to tell you that Jess is okay." Luke turned around to see Kirk staring at him. He gave him a dirty look and walked around the corner where he could have a little more privacy. "I also wanted to tell you that I'm sorry. I wasn't very nice to your yesterday." Luke realized.

"It's okay." Liz reassured him. "I haven't given you much reason to believe anything that I ever say. But I promise. This time is different. I really am changing. I'm doing it for myself and for Jess."

"Right."

"And you too. I can't thank you enough for all that you have done for me and for Jess. I'm grateful." Liz told him.

Luke felt it was nice to hear it.

"But I'm still his mom, Luke." She reminded him.

"I know that Liz."

"I might not be a very good one, but I am his."

Luke was silent.

"I know that you want to adopt him. I understand why." She paused for a moment. "And I'll sign off on it. No matter how hard that might be."

"You'll sign off on it?" Luke was a little surprised.

"I have a few conditions." Liz informed him.

Of course, she did Luke thought.

"It has to be Jess's decision, and I want him to meet Jimmy."

"No." Luke said quickly. He was really beginning to get tired of hearing Jimmy's name.

"I know you hate Jimmy. And you probably have every right to hate him. But Jess doesn't know him, and he should."

"That's no one's fault but Jimmy's." Luke reminded her.

"Those are my conditions." Liz told him. "I love you, big brother. I love everything that you have done for us over the years. But I'm not going to change my mind on this one."

Luke stayed silent.

"I got to go. They don't let us stay on the phone too long. Jimmy's number is 555-0146. I hope you call him and hopefully I'll hear from you soon."

"Yeah. Bye Liz." Luke hung up the phone. Why did things have to be so damn hard?

* * *

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	91. Heart to Heart

**Super short chapter, but I think it might be my favorite.**

 **I hope you guys enjoy!**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **2.18 Heart to Heart**

Jess sat in his room thinking about the fact that it was summer break. He should be out enjoying his freedom.

Although, there wasn't much to do in Stars Hollow, Jess found himself yearning to sit under the gazebo reading a book or even in Taylor's grocery store causing trouble.

He knew being grounded was supposed to suck. He was sure that his uncle wanted him to feel trapped. But it didn't make him feel any better. He hated it. There were many times in his life where he was sure that he deserved to be grounded, but this time was different. He didn't deserve it. This was his uncle's fault. He only went to New York because he needed to figure out why everyone was keeping things from him.

He sighed and sat down his book. He couldn't stay in his room for one minute longer. He slipped on his shoes, and slowly headed downstairs. Jess thought that everyone had already gone. He slowly walked around the corner. The door was in his sights. He reached for the door and slowly opened it. He sighed when he saw Lorelai's car sitting in the driveway.

"Damn it." He said softly under his breath.

As if on cue, "Going somewhere?" He heard Lorelai say from behind him.

Busted. He thought to himself. "Lorelai." He said as he slowly turned around.

"So?" She crossed her arms and gave him a look, waiting for his response.

"I was just about to go to the kitchen." Jess lied, knowing that it wasn't necessary for him to lie. He had been caught. There was no denying that.

Lorelai smirked. "Really?" She uncrossed her arms and seemed playful. Jess could tell that she wasn't mad at him. He thought that was probably a good sign. "I know that we've remodeled, but I had no idea that we moved the kitchen to the front porch." She joked as she walked to the door and shut it for him. "Sounds like a horrible idea to me. What do you think?" She asked Jess.

He knew what she was really asking. "Probably a bad idea." He knew that he was not leaving the house today.

"Agreed." She touched his shoulder. "I was about to make a sandwich in the actual kitchen." She joked again. "I could make you one too."

"Sure."

"Great." She led him into the kitchen.

Jess sighed. He had been so close. "I thought you worked on Saturday." He said as he sat at the kitchen table and watched Lorelai grab the meat and condiments out of the fridge.

"Not every Saturday." She corrected.

"You are babysitting me." He realized, his voice rising a little in frustration.

Lorelai sat everything in her hands down on the kitchen table. "You are sixteen. You don't need a babysitter." She remarked. "Unless." She paused. "You aren't capable of staying in this house by yourself when you are grounded. I mean you wouldn't leave without permission, would you?" She gave him a look.

He thought about his response. Although, she didn't seem mad, Jess knew he didn't want to make her mad. She had seemed pretty pissed at him the night before. "I don't deserve to be grounded." The words came out of his mouth quickly.

"Said every teenager ever grounded." She mocked, as she opened the bread.

"You guys lied to me." He explained to her.

"You are right." Lorelai agreed, taking Jess by surprise. "We did lie to you, and we shouldn't have. We can't expect you to be honest with us if we aren't honest with you. It has to go both ways."

Jess was sure this was some kind of reverse psychology. "You agree with me?"

"I somewhat agree with you." She told him.

Jess raised an eyebrow. "Somewhat?"

Lorelai sighed heavily and took a moment to think about what she was going to say to the sixteen year old. "You really scared me yesterday." She stared. A mother worries about her children. That is just common knowledge. It comes with the job title." Her tone was serious, but she didn't sound angry.

Jess had never had a mother figure in his life, at least not like Lorelai.

"When I got the call that you were not at school, I didn't know what to think."

"I'm sorry I worried you." He interrupted her. "I'm not sure my mom has ever worried about me. Uncle Luke is the only one that has ever really cared about me. Sometimes, I think he cares too much."

"He's protective." Lorelai offered.

"Overprotective." Jess corrected her. "He grounded me for an entire summer."

"I was grounded for an entire summer once." Lorelai told him with a smile.

"Really?"

Lorelai nodded. "But fortunately for me, that just meant I didn't have to go with my parents out of the country. It ended up being my very favorite summer."

Jess gave her a look. He knew that wasn't going to be the case for him, but he could tell that Lorelai was trying to help. "When are you and Uncle Luke going to Italy?" He joked.

"Half past never." She laughed.

"A guy can hope." He smiled. He was pleasantly surprised by the conversation they were having. He felt like she was listening to him.

"I knowing being a kid can really suck. I have been there, done that, and I think I still have the t-shirt." She touched his arm.

"I'm not a kid." Jess corrected her.

"It's all the same." She squeezed his shoulder gently and then removed her hand to begin making the sandwich. "Your uncle will always see you as a kid. He's protective and he cares about you. I think we just have to get used to it." Lorelai smiled. "I wish that I would have had someone like Luke in my life when I was a kid." She told him honestly. She never felt like anyone really understood her or really cared about her. "I'm glad that my kids have him in their lives. I think we are all a little better because of it." Even though she was frustrated with Luke, she could see how much he cared and that he meant well. He always meant well.

Jess nodded. She wasn't wrong.

"We aren't always going to agree with him." She added.

"He thinks everyone should agree with him." Jess added.

"On some things that's true. He also isn't a big talker."

"Our Luke…" Jess smirked. "Not a big talker…I can't believe it."

"Ha…ha…" Lorelai smiled as she finished making Jess's sandwich. She handed to him so she could start making hers.

Jess thought for a minute. The conversation was going so well. He wasn't sure that he should bring up more of his questions, but Lorelai really did seem to be listening to him. As he watched Lorelai make her sandwich, he finally said, "Why doesn't he want me to see Jimmy?"

"Jess." Lorelai was surprised by the question. It wasn't one she was sure she should try to answer.

"He won't tell me. I think that I deserve to know." Jess rationalized with her. It was the truth. He did deserve to know.

Lorelai sighed and thought for a moment. "What is said in this kitchen stays in this kitchen. You got it."

"Got it." He nodded with a slight smile.

"He feels like your dad."

"That's not really news to me." Jess told her. "He's the only one I've ever really know…" He paused as he thought about Liz's boyfriends. "Well. Unless you call all of those guys my mom had around when I was a kid, father figures."

Lorelai cringed at the thought. She knew Jess hadn't had the best childhood, and she wished that she could take away those memories. But she also knew that those memories are what made Jess himself. And she wouldn't want to change that. "Luke is worried that Jimmy will disappoint you."

"I've been disappointed my whole life. I can take it."

"You shouldn't have to take it." Lorelai cut him off. "I don't want that for you and neither does Luke."

"What if he really has changed?" Jess asked. It could happen.

"Then…" She thought about it. "You might like him better than you like Luke." Lorelai knew that was part of Luke's worries. He didn't want to lose Jess to Jimmy.

Jess crinkled his face and shook his head. "That's not going to happen."

"You don't know that for sure and neither does Luke. He's too afraid to change it. He isn't much for change."

"I don't think that is true." Jess told her. "He has had a lot of change over the years. Me. You guys. He seems to handle that okay."

"You're right." Lorelai thought. "But those are good things." She told him. "You getting to know Jimmy is not a good thing in his mind. It wouldn't be a good change if you chose to be with Jimmy instead of Luke."

Jess couldn't see that happen. He knew that he had a pretty good life with Luke and Lorelai. He didn't want that to change. But he also wanted to know if Jimmy had changed. He had questions. "It might be a good change for me. I've always been curious about my dad…" He sighed. "You know. Why did he leave me? Did he ever think about me? I've got questions only Jimmy can answer."

"Maybe you should have this conversation with your uncle. A calm. Cool. Collected. Conversation." Lorelai recommended.

"We will just start yelling at each other, and I'll end up grounded for a year." Jess could already see it happening.

"Well you never know if you don't at least try. Your uncle isn't going to change his mind if you don't talk to him about how you are feeling and why you really want to meet Jimmy."

Jess was silent for a moment, taking in their conversation. "why was it so important for him to find my mom?"

"You've got a lot of questions." Lorelai told him. "Questions that aren't really ones that I should answer."

"But you know the reason." He knew she knew. "But you aren't going to tell me." He knew that too.

"I'm going to let you talk to your uncle." Lorelai knew that they needed to have this conversation. It all needed to come from Luke.

"Fine." He sighed. "I could go find him now." He started to stand up from the table, but she stopped him.

"Not a chance."

"I had to try." He smiled.

"You know Jess." Lorelai sighed. "I'm sorry that things with your mom have not always been easy and there were times you didn't feel loved or safe or important." She took a moment. She could feel tears circulating in her eyes. "I hate that you had to deal with that, and I know that I am not your mom. But I want you to know that you are loved and important, and I will do whatever I can to make you feel safe." She touched his leg softly. "You can always come to me no matter what. I will do whatever I can to be there for you." A small tear fell from her face. She removed her hand from his knee to wipe it from her face.

Jess smiled. It was exactly what he needed to hear. He could feel tears forming in his eyes, but he was not going to cry. He decided to make a joke. "Do you think you could talk to my uncle about not grounding me for an entire summer?" He smiled.

Lorelai let out a soft laugh. "I will see what I can do…" She looked at his half-eaten sandwich. "Now eat your sandwich." She told him, playfully.

"Thanks, Lorelai."

And she knew it wasn't just because she had fixed him a sandwich, and that meant everything to her.

* * *

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	92. Figuring it Out

**I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Thanks so much for sticking with me. Sorry for the hiatus.**

 **A Place to Call Home**

 **2.19 Figuring it Out**

"I can't believe Luke." Rory said as she paced around Lane's bedroom. She had been ranting for the last hour.

Lane was sitting in her closet looking through her music and listening to her best friend rant. "Maybe you can talk to him." She recommended, again.

"You can't talk to him. He is unreasonable." Rory said again, for like the thousandth time.

"I don't think that's true." Lane stood up and walked over to her bed. "I mean Mama Kim is unreasonable but I'm not so sure Luke is."

Rory furrowed her brow. "I'll be in fine in Chicago." She said with her hands on her hips. "It's not like me and Dean are going to have sex."

"Shh…" Lane said quickly. "My Mama."

"Sorry." Rory remembered. "We aren't going to do that…you know. We aren't even thinking about that. If we were, we would probably want to do it in Stars Hollow. I mean I would be more comfortable in my own bed."

Lane chuckled. "I think that would be a little weird. You have a small bed and Dean is a tall guy. I'm not sure he would fit."

Rory nodded. That was probably true. "I'm just so mad. I'm pretty reasonable. I have big dreams. I would let anything ruin that."

"Again." Lane paused, hoping she could get through to her ranting friend. "I think you should talk to Luke."

Rory thought about it for a moment. "Maybe you are right. Maybe he will listen to me. He has to let me go. My mom was going to let me go." Rory headed to Lane's bedroom door. "Thanks, Lane. You're the best."

Lane smiled as Rory left. She told her the same thing over and over again. Lane was just glad that she finally listened to her.

* * *

Sookie and the kids walk into her house. It had been quiet a day at the zoo. She wasn't sure what she was thinking when she decided to take two little kids and a baby to the zoo by herself. Never again. She repeated over and over to herself.

"It was so much fun, Aunt Sookie!" Ruby exclaimed. "Really. Seriously. The best. The only thing that would have made it better would have been if Luke and my mommy were there." Ruby swung her hands up in the air.

Sookie smiled. Maybe it was worth it after all.

"It really was the best mommy. Can we go back tomorrow?" Davey asked.

"Um I don't think so Davey boy." Sookie touched his little head as she sat Martha's car seat down.

"Maybe the next day. It's the summer." Ruby said happily. "The summer is the best. That's what Ryan told me."

"Ryan would be right. But it's only fun when you are little. When you become a mommy, you have to work."

"You should work less, mommy." Davey told her.

"I would sweet cakes, but mommy loves her job. Next time we go to the zoo we will make sure everyone goes with us."

"Good idea." Davey agreed.

"That's the best idea."

Martha started to coo.

"She agrees." Ruby walked over to the baby. "She's so cute."

"Yeah. She's pretty great."

"I can't wait for my mommy and Luke to have a baby." Ruby smiled from ear to ear. "I will be the best big sister on the whole planet…well except for Rory. She is pretty great."

Sookie tried to hide her face. She knew Lorelai did not want to have any more children.

"And I can't wait for Luke to be my daddy. He's the best." Ruby said in a sing-song way. "He's going to love my dance."

"Do you have a special dance for Luke?" Sookie asked.

Ruby smiled big. "Yes. But shhh. Don't tell him. It's a big surprise."

Sookie watched as the little girl danced and Davey joined her. Sookie was glad that the two of them had each other, just like she had Lorelai.

* * *

Lorelai was sitting on the couch reading. Jess had gone back upstairs after eating his sandwich. She was really thankful that they were able to talk. It had been the best conversation she had ever had with Jess. She hoped they could continue building their relationship.

She heard a pounding on the door. She got up to answer the door, before she could, the door opened.

"Where is he?" Paris said as she busted through the door.

"Paris."

"Hi Lorelai." She said calmly. "Where is Jess?"

"Paris, Jess is upstairs, but he is grounded." Lorelai informed her. "Which means no visitors."

"I need to see him, Lorelai." She said with urgency. "I need to kill him."

"Well I can't let that happen." Lorelai smiled. "It would probably be too messy."

"This is no joke." Paris told her. "I can't believe that he skipped that test. That was the stupidest thing he has ever done."

"I think he knows that, and if he doesn't, he will once he starts summer school."

"Lorelai, Jess is one of the smartest people that I know. Almost as smart as me. I don't need him to skip school and miss tests. Then I'll have no competition."

"That's not true."

They both looked up to see Jess walking down the stairs. "Rory is smarter than both of us. She's gonna kick our asses next year." Jess told them.

"Well you aren't even going to be in the competition if you don't show up." Paris crossed her arms.

Lorelai thought about it for a moment. "I'll let the two of you talk. Ten minutes." She pointed at Jess and he nodded in response. He kind of wished she had only given him five minutes. He didn't want to deal with Paris's wrath.

"I'm so mad at you."

"I couldn't tell." Jess walked past her to the couch to sit down.

"Don't be smart." Paris growled. "I don't need you to act like what you did wasn't stupid. It was unbelievable."

Jess rolled his eyes. He didn't need Paris yelling at him. "Paris, I wasn't think about that stupid test."

"You should have been."

"Maybe, but I had other things on my mind."

"What was more important than the test?" Paris asked him as she leaned against the chair for support.

"My mom." He said softly.

Paris looked at him, surprised by his response. He barely ever talked about his mom. "What is wrong with your mom?"

Jess shrugged. "She's in rehab." He thought about it. "But yesterday I didn't know what was wrong with her. Everyone was lying to me. All that mattered to me, was why."

"So she's in rehab?" Paris sat down.

Jess nodded. "Yep."

"How does that make you feel?"

"She's been in rehab before." Jess told her. "I don't know how to feel."

"You should have taken the test and then gone to New York. Hell, I would have even gone with you."

Jess gave her a look. "I wasn't think about the stupid test." He told her again.

"Jess." Paris said softly, she seemed much more relaxed. "I'm sorry about your mom."

Jess shrugged. "It is what it is."

Paris didn't know what else to say, probably a first for her.

"I've got summer school now."

"Chilton doesn't give make-up test."

"Yeah." Jess sighed. "I thought maybe they would make an exception."

"No such luck."

"Nope." Jess nodded. "I'm in summer school and supposedly I'm grounded for the entire summer."

"That's overkill. You wouldn't have gone if everyone wasn't lying to you."

"That's what I said."

"I'm sure your uncle will get over it."

"I don't know." He said sadly. "Something else happened yesterday."

"What?" Paris was curious.

"My mom said that my dad, Jimmy, wants to see me."

"Really?" Paris was surprised. "Is that what you want?"

"I don't know. It isn't what my uncle wants." Jess told her.

"Yeah. But. It doesn't really matter what your uncle wants. In this situation it matters what you want." Paris told him. "Jimmy is your dad. It's your life."

"I don't think my uncle is going to go for it."

Paris shook her head. "That's stupid." She said sincerely. "If you want to see Jimmy, you should be able to see Jimmy."

"I think I need to see him. I have questions."

"Then you should get to see him." Paris stood up. "I think our ten minutes are almost up."

Jess nodded. "Yeah I guess so." Jess smiled. "Thanks for not killing me."

"I really wanted to." Paris let out a slight smile. "But your excuse was better than I thought it was going to be. I thought you were going to say you skipped the test just because. I might have punched you."

"I don't want a Paris Gellar punch."

"I'm sure you will deserve one at some point, but I'll let you slide this time."

"I appreciate that." Jess was glad that Paris had stopped by. He needed someone was on his side. He was happy to have had the conversation with Lorelai, but he still felt that she was on his uncle's side. He didn't blame her. They were in a relationship. That made sense. But with Paris, it was nice to have someone on his side. He didn't feel so alone when she was around, even though she had started the conversation by yelling at him. That was just Paris.

* * *

Ryan was at the gym, shooting hoops. He told coach that his parents had given him permission to go to California. He was really surprised by how excited he felt. He never thought he would go to camp, but he thought it was pretty cool that he was going to get to go to California.

"Hey." Daniel said as he walked into the gym. "Can I join you?"

"Sure." Ryan threw the ball to Daniel. Daniel took a shot and scored.

"Nice shot."

"Nice assist." Daniel told him.

Ryan got the ball and threw it back to Daniel, who scored again. "You are on today. Too bad we don't have a game."

"Yeah. Hopefully I'm shooting like that in California." Daniel took another shot and scored.

"You can go?" Ryan assumed.

Daniel nodded. "Yep. How about you?"

"Yeah me too."

Daniel was happy about that. "I guess we will be roomies."

"Yeah."

"I know you haven't completely forgiven me. I get it. I don't know if I would forgive me either."

"I'm not mad anymore, Daniel. It sucked."

"I know. I'm sorry."

Ryan stole the ball away from Daniel and scored. "We will be okay."

Daniel smiled. "Good." He scored again. "So are you excited about California?"

Ryan nodded. "Yeah. I think we will learn a lot."

"Yeah. I think so."

"I'm also excited because I'm going to call Grace."

"Your girlfriend?"

"Well. She was my girlfriend, but she broke up with me when she moved. I'm hoping that she will be excited to see me." Maybe that was why Ryan was so excited about California. He really hoped that he was going to get to see Grace. He had no intentions on telling his mom or Luke about meeting up with Grace. If they weren't going to let Rory go with Dean, they definitely wouldn't want him to go to California if they knew about Grace. He was surprised his mom hadn't remembered that she lived there. It was a big place, but he still hoped that they would be able to see each other.

* * *

Rory stormed into the diner, ready to let Luke have it. She spotted him behind the counter. "Luke." She said sternly.

"Hey Rory." He said nicely.

Rory glared at him.

"Want me to fix you something to eat?" He asked, oblivious to her current mood.

"No." She said simply. "I need to talk to you."

"I'm a little busy here." He told her as he poured a cup of coffee for a customer.

"It can't wait." She said adamantly.

"Rory."

"Luke." She said sternly.

Luke sighed. She obviously wasn't going to leave. "Alright." He pointed to the storage room, and Rory followed him. "What's going on Rory?"

"You know exactly what is going on." Rory crossed her arms.

"Does this have to do with Chicago?" Luke figured it out.

"Of course it does." She said dramatically.

"Rory." He sighed.

"I've never given you any reason not to trust me." Rory started. "I'm extremely trustworthy."

"It isn't you that I don't trust."

"Dean has never given you any reason not to trust him." Rory countered.

"He's a boy. That's every reason not to trust him."

"Yet." She paused. "You are letting Ryan go all the way to California."

"That's different."

"It is only different because I'm a girl and he's a guy."

Luke shook his head. "That's not true. I think Ryan should go because it is for basketball. If I thought he was going to California for any other reason, I wouldn't want him to go. I worry about all of you. So much."

"I love that you want to protect me, but I swear you have nothing to protect me from. I'll be fine in Chicago."

Luke sighed. "Rory. I."

"Just please think about it." Rory changed her tone a little. She was still mad, but she tried to be a little nicer. Yelling at him, probably wasn't going to change his mind.

Luke looked at her. "I'll think about it."

"Besides mom was okay with it."

"She wasn't okay with it." Although, Luke knew that wasn't the truth.

"She said that I could go if you thought it was okay. Which meant that she thought it was okay."

"I'll talk to your mom again."

Rory nodded.

Luke meant it. He would actually talk to Lorelai this time. Last time, he realized that he hadn't listened to her at all.

"That's all I ask. I promise if you let me go, I want let you down." Rory told him before exiting the storage room.

Luke watched her leave. He needed to talk to Lorelai. He needed to do a better job of listening.

* * *

Later that evening, after the dinner rush, Luke made his way home. He found Lorelai sitting in the kitchen with leftover takeout. "Aw." He made a face. "I could have brought dinner."

"The kids wanted Al's."

"How could anyone ever want Al's?" Luke laughed as he sat next to her.

"There is just something about it."

"There is nothing else like it, that's for sure." Luke smiled.

They were both quiet for a moment. "Luke."

"Lorelai."

They said in unison.

"You go first." Luke told her.

"I talked to Rory."

"So did I." Luke told her. "She's pretty mad at me."

"Yeah. That was the gist of our conversation, but she also said that you were going to think about it, and talk to me about it."

"Yeah. That's what I told her."

"Are you going to talk at me? Or with me?" Lorelai asked him.

"I'm going to listen to you." Luke reached for her hand. "Like I should have done earlier today."

"I understand why you are worried. She's 16. Dean's 16." Lorelai told him. "And no matter how good either one of them are, hormones can kick in and mistakes can be made. I think about it all the time." She paused and pointed at herself. "I mean Rory is my daughter." She said simply.

"It's different."

"Yeah." She agreed. "I know. I've worked really hard to make it different for her and all of my kids. I want them to know that they can come to me with anything. And I try to be open and understanding to their needs." She explaining, hoping to get through to him.

Luke shifted in his chair. He knew what she was trying to say. "You don't think I'm doing that."

"You are protective, Luke. I love that about you." She squeezed his hand. "I always will. But I don't want our kids to sneak behind our back to do things because we are being too protective."

"You think we should let her go." Luke knew it.

Lorelai shrugged. "I think you should let me go with her."

"You are going to go with her."

"I think it is a good idea. Maybe we can even take Ruby and make it a girl's trip." Lorelai was proud of herself for figuring out a plan. She thought it was a pretty good plan. "That way I can keep an eye on her, and she can still go." Lorelai thought about how excited Rory had been about the trip. "Rory was so excited." She told Luke. "I should have never told her she could go if it were okay with you. That puts way too much pressure on you." She admitted.

"I should have talked to you about it first." Luke admitted. "Instead, I laid my foot down." He sighed. "I was stressed about Jess and took my frustrations out on you. I should never do that."

"It's okay." Lorelai reassured him. "Can I tell Rory that she can go?"

Luke nodded.

"I'll book our flights tomorrow." Lorelai was happy with their decision. She felt like it was a win-win for all of them.

"So. How's Jess?" Luke asked.

"He's okay." Lorelai nodded. "I think you should talk to him." She paused. "If you can talk rationally and calmly." She gave him a small smile.

Luke thought about it. "I don't know if I should talk to her just yet. I'm not sure what to do about the Jimmy situation."

"I think you should talk to Jess about it. He may actually help you decide what to do." Lorelai hoped that he was listening to her.

"You think that I should let him see Jimmy." Luke was reading between the lines. He could tell that Lorelai thought he was making the wrong decision about Jimmy.

"I think you should talk to Jess." She repeated. "He is a really bright kid. With all things considering, he has a pretty good head on his shoulders."

Luke nodded. She wasn't wrong. "You're right. Maybe tomorrow." He trailed off.

"He'll be here." She smiled.

Luke smiled back. "I think I'm getting the hang of this parenting thing."

"I think you already have the hang of it."

"By the time we have kids I will be an ole pro at it." He smiled at the thought of having kids with Lorelai.

Lorelai felt a knot in the pit of her stomach. "Luke." She said slowly. She hated to bring this up now, but he gave her an opening. She should have told him months ago.

"What?" Luke could tell that her demeanor had changed.

"I…um…I…" She really didn't know how to say it. She was at a loss for words, and that didn't happen to her very often.

"What's wrong?" Luke became concerned.

"I should have told you this a long time ago." She admitted. "But I was trying to put it off for as long as possible."

Luke was confused. "What are you talking about? Are you okay? Are you sick?"

Lorelai shook her head. "I'm not sick. Not sick."

"Pregnant?" He said with a smile on his face.

Lorelai knew that she was going to break his heart. "Oh. No."

"Then what is going on?"

"I don't want to get pregnant." She finally told him. "I don't want to have any more kids."

"You don't." He was surprised. He never saw this coming.

"No. I have been a mom for half of my life now….I have no complaints. My kids are my whole world. I wouldn't change their existence for anything in the world. But I just don't want anymore."

"But." Luke didn't know what to say. "I just assumed you would want at least one with me. You don't have one with me. You know a kid you can dress in flannel and put a baseball cap on."

"Luke."

"You don't want that." He was finding this news hard to believe.

"It isn't that I don't want that."

"It sounds like it is."

"Luke."

"Why are you just now telling me this?" He was hurt.

Lorelai hated the look on his face. "Because I know that it is a deal breaker, and I was hoping that somehow, some way I would change my mind."

Luke shook his head.

"That's why you said no to my proposal." He realized. "It makes complete sense now."

"Luke."

"You should have told me sooner. I have had all of these pictures in my mind of our future. Every single one has us with more kids…and now I have to picture something else."

"Still picture me. That's not going to change. I don't want that to change. Tell me that we can work this out."

Luke stood up. "I left something at the diner."

"Luke," Lorelai knew he was just running. "Don't leave. We aren't done here."

"I…You know. I just can't. I think I might stay there tonight."

"No. Don't do that. Don't run from me. Don't give up on us."

"I need time to think." He walked backwards toward the door.

"Luke." She was heartbroken.

"I just need time."

"How much time?"

But before he answered her question, he was gone.

* * *

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